Indiranagar Residents Urge B-SMILE to Reconsider Proposed Elevated Corridor

The federation of Residents Welfare Associations, I Change Indiranagar (ICIN), has urged B-SMILE to reconsider the proposed elevated corridor project planned to run through 80 Feet Road, Chinmaya Mission Hospital (CMH) Road, and 100 Feet Road in Indiranagar. Supported by more than 900 resident signatures, the formal representation raised major concerns regarding the project's planning, data collection, and financial viability.

The submission came days after ICIN members conducted a citizen-led tree-counting exercise along the proposed alignment.

In the letter, the resident group questioned the project's inclusion in Bengaluru's mobility planning framework. According to ICIN, the proposed elevated corridor does not figure in the city's Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP) 2020.

The residents argued that the project's problem statement is inadequately defined. Although the proposed alignment passes through 18 junctions between Old Madras Road and Silk Board, the Detailed Project Report (DPR) relies almost entirely on traffic data collected from a single location near Domlur.

Furthermore, the representation alleged that the DPR does not comply with Indian Roads Congress guidelines for planning grade separators and elevated structures. The group noted that several mandatory traffic studies were completely omitted from the planning process.

Local traffic and pedestrian impacts were also reportedly ignored in the DPR. ICIN pointed out that the report fails to assess how the corridor would affect pedestrians and local traffic, particularly around the busy CMH Road and the commercial stretches of Indiranagar.

The residents also challenged the projected benefits of the corridor, stating that the claimed travel-time savings and financial returns lack adequate supporting evidence.

Finally, the group highlighted significant discrepancies in environmental impact assessments. While official estimates suggested a lower impact, the citizen-led tree census identified over 780 trees along the proposed corridor alignment.

In light of these findings, the residents have requested a comprehensive review of the project and urged authorities to explore alternative solutions, such as grade-level improvements.