Bengaluru Business Corridor: BDA Initiates Global Tender For Long-Pending Peripheral Ring Road Project

In a significant development, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) announced on 30 January that it has opened a global tender for the much-awaited 74-km Peripheral Ring Road (PRR) project, now officially named the Bengaluru Business Corridor.

The tender document outlines the execution of an eight-lane Peripheral Ring Road, complete with service roads, to be implemented through the public-private partnership (PPP) mode. The chosen model involves a revenue-sharing arrangement for a lease period spanning 50 years.

The 74-km Bengaluru Business Corridor is intended to be an eight-lane access-controlled expressway connecting Tumakuru Road and Hosur Road via various routes, including Hesaraghatta Road, Doddaballapur Road, Ballari Road, Hennur Road, Old Madras Road, Hoskote Road and Sarjapur Road.

The comprehensive project, structured on a design, build, finance, operate, and transfer (DBFOTA) basis, encompasses the construction, operation, and maintenance of the road.

This includes the development of cloverleaf junctions, flyovers, underpasses, road overbridges/underbridges, toll plazas, transit zones, culverts, and minor and major bridges, among other components.

Land acquisition forms a crucial aspect of the project, with approximately 2,560 acres slated for acquisition. The estimated cost of land acquisition alone stands at Rs 21,000 crore.

The PRR project, initially proposed in 2007 to alleviate traffic congestion in the city's outskirts, has faced multiple hurdles, causing the initial cost projection of Rs 3,000 crore to escalate to Rs 21,091 crore and subsequently rise to around Rs 27,000 crore.

The 74-km road will encompass 232 acres of government land and the remaining private properties. Despite two unsuccessful tender attempts in 2022, the BDA remains optimistic about the current tender, emphasising the importance of compensating farmers and affected landowners, reports moneycontrol.

The BDA has set the date for the new tender opening on 2 March 2024.

Significance Of The Project

The project is very significant to Bengaluru city because it is expected to address serious traffic challenges.

According to local authorities and the state government, Bengaluru needs the PRR, given the massive geographical expansion of the city to the current spread of 2,196 sq/km and explosive growth of vehicular ownership (2019 estimate — over 80 lakh).

This initiative marks a crucial step forward in addressing long-standing traffic congestion issues in Bengaluru's outskirts, signalling hope for the timely and successful execution of the Bengaluru Business Corridor project.