Bengaluru: NHAI is getting ready to hand over another section of the Bangalore Satellite Town Ring Road (STRR) by March 2025. This is because the construction of STRR has now been nearing its final stages.
The 21-km stretch connecting Hoskote to the Tamil Nadu border will be ready for vehicle movement next year. In addition, free passes would be issued for the first few months. The toll charges in this stretch of the STRR would be lesser than both the existing sections, Dobbspet-Doddaballapur and Doddaballapur-Hoskote.
STRR Hoskote-Tamil Nadu Stretch Nears Completion, Set For March 2025 Launch
Once the Hoskote-Tamil Nadu border stretch is opened to traffic, the total operational length of the STRR will reach 102.6 km. When it's completely built by 2027, it will be 288 km long, with 45 km in Tamil Nadu.
"Fifty percent of the work on the Hoskote-Tamil Nadu border stretch is completed and we are on track to meet the February-March deadline," said KB Jayakumar, Project Director of NHAI (Bengaluru).
This is a greenfield project part of the STRR. According to Jayakumar, because the construction is starting from scratch, the toll rates will also be relatively cheaper.
Car users currently pay Rs 185 for a single journey and Rs 275 for a return journey within 24 hours on the 81.6 km Dobbspet-Hoskote stretch. This comes to Rs 2.2 per kilometer for a single journey and Rs 1.68 for a return journey.
Stretch Also Connects Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway
A similar configuration for the Hoskote-Tamil Nadu border stretch as that of NICE Road. Here, the depressed median is 11 meters separating the flow of traffic. As Jayakumar explained: This stretch also connects to the Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway which is branded as NE 7.
After receiving the nod from South Western Railway (SWR), construction has started on the only rail overbridge (ROB), according to the NHAI official. The ROB was being constructed in the Lingadeeramallasandra village on the Bengaluru- Chennai railway line.
"The railways have given approval, and the foundation work has started. The ROB will be completed by February," said Jayakumar, adding that work on the 11 underpasses was almost complete.
NHAI Issues Tenders For Remaining STRR Stretches, Designated As NH 948
The STRR stretch from Dobbspet to the Tamil Nadu border (102.6 km) has been notified as NH 648.
The NHAI issued tenders in early September for the remaining five stretches of the STRR aggregating 144.25 km at an estimated cost of Rs 4,749.74 crore with a deadline of two years. The five stretches would be notified as NH 948.
When complete, STRR would girdle around Bengaluru and long-distance commercial vehicles would bypass this city instead of entering it.
Also Read: Bengaluru Fridge Horror: ‘I Killed Her Because…’ – Suspect’s Diary Reveals SHOCKING Details