Indiranagar residents urge B-SMILE to reconsider proposed elevated corridor

I Change Indiranagar (ICIN), a federation of Residents Welfare Associations (RWAs) in Indiranagar, has urged B-SMILE to reconsider the proposed elevated corridor passing through 80 Feet Road, Chinmaya Mission Hospital (CMH) Road and 100 Feet Road in Indiranagar, raising six major concerns over the project’s planning, data collection and financial viability.

The letter comes days after ICIN conducted a citizen-led tree-counting exercise along the proposed elevated corridor alignment.

In a representation submitted to B-SMILE, supported by more than 900 signatures, the group questioned the project’s inclusion in the city’s mobility planning framework. They claimed that the proposed corridor does not figure in the Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP) 2020. 

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

Further, the letter states that the DPR does not comply with Indian Roads Congress guidelines for planning grade separators and elevated structures, alleging that several mandatory traffic studies were not conducted.

The residents also noted that the DPR doesn’t assess the impact on local traffic and pedestrians, particularly around the busy CMH Road and commercial stretches of Indiranagar.

The group said the projected travel-time savings and financial returns lack adequate supporting evidence. They also claimed that the DPR underestimates environmental impacts, noting that a citizen-led tree census identified over 780 trees along the proposed corridor, significantly higher than official estimates.

The residents have sought a review of the project and called for alternative solutions, including grade-level improvements.