Bengaluru: Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday inspected the railway station stretch from Bengaluru Airport to Bengaluru Cantt. He also shared a video of the same on his X handle which showed him inside a train with a map of the area. He later said that that the railway line from Bengaluru Airport to Yelahanka will be doubled to increase the traffic capacity.
The minister added that he will work with Bengaluru Airport authorities to bring the railway station closer to the arrival and departure spots.
"We have discussed transportation in Bengaluru in detail. Today, the review of 3 big projects has been done. First, the DPR’s progress on the circular rail to be constructed in Bengaluru is good. Today, I inspected the area from the airport to the Bengaluru Cantt,” the Union Minister said.
"We are trying to keep the railway station as close as possible to the Bengaluru airport… We also decided to double the line from the airport to Yelahanka railway station…The progress of other stations in the Bengaluru city is also good…" he further added.
The minister also reviewed the progress of redevelopment work of Bengaluru Cantonment railway station and said that the railways will soon begin large-scale production of Amrit Bharat trains version 2.0 with improvements.
"We have decided that we will work with the Bengaluru Airport Authority and try to take the station all the way as close to the departure and arrival (of the airport) as possible. We will start the discussions," Vaishnaw said after conducting window trailing inspection between Kempegowda International Airport Railway Station (halt) – Bengaluru Cantonment, reported PTI.
"We will do the doubling of the railway line from Airport to Yelahanka so that a lot of (traffic) capacity will be created and then we have metro coming up very fast," he further said.
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Developing Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project
On the Bengaluru Suburban Railway Project (BSRP), the Railway Minister said that both the corridors will be coming up very fast. He said traffic capacity will increase with the BSRP and Metro Rail options coming up for commuters soon.
On recently launched NaMo Bharat Rapid Rail, Vaishnaw said the railways is mulling to introduce these trains for short distances, such as Bengaluru to Mysuru and Bengaluru to Tumakuru.
"These trains are for cities which are close to each other, like Bengaluru and Mysuru. The distance between Bengaluru and Mysuru is 135 km — an ideal distance for rapid rail, so that we can then run at a very good frequency. Cities like Bengaluru and Mysuru, Bengaluru and Tumakuru are ideal for a Namo Bharat Rapid rail," he said.
He also reviewed the progress of Circular Rail, which he said would change the entire transportation facilities in Bengaluru. "The DPR (Detailed Project Report) is progressing very well and hopefully by the end of December it will be completed. Then the next step will be taken," he said.