The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Just park your wheels and catch a BMTC bus

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Sunday, Jan 02, 2011
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Just park your wheels and catch a BMTC bus

Anil Kumar Sastry

Corporation's ‘park and ride' facility to become a reality at last

Three TTMCs to be inaugurated after the
ZP, TP elections
The centre at Vijayanagar has a five-floor
multi-level parking facility

— Photo: K. Murali Kumar

Ready and waiting:The Vijayanagar Travel and Transit Management Centre has a three-bay bus terminal and a multi-level car parking facility that can accommodate 750 cars and 1,000 two-wheelers

BANGALORE: Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation's plan to decongest roads in Bangalore by offering the ‘park and ride' facilities will soon become a reality.

Three Travel and Transit Management Centres (TTMCs) in different parts of the city, which are in the final stages of construction, are likely to be thrown open to the public very soon.

The TTMCs, which are coming up at Vijayanagar, Domlur and Whitefield, have ample car and two-wheeler parking facilities to encourage motorists to park their vehicles and catch a BMTC bus to their respective destinations.

If the idea catches the fancy of motorists, the roads can be decongested to a large extent, BMTC officials felt.

BMTC Managing Director Syed Zameer Pasha told The Hindu that three TTMCs, which are almost ready, would formally be inaugurated after the zilla and taluk panchayat elections.

He hoped that the people would join the BMTC in its endeavour to decongest the roads by patronising these facilities as the bus services had improved considerably. “Efforts will also be made to exploit the commercial potential of these structures to leverage passenger fares,” he said.

The largest

Of the three TTMCs built under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme, the one in Vijayanagar, built on 15,581 square metres of land is the largest. Built at a cost of Rs. 58 crore, this houses not only a three-bay bus terminal that can accommodate 18 buses at a time but also a five-floor multi-level car parking facility for 750 cars and 1,000 two-wheelers.

BMTC Chief Engineer (Projects) P.K. Palanetra Naik said the Vijayanagar TTMC also houses a bus depot than can accommodate over 100 buses in the ground floor. The first and second floors will be utilised as office and commercial space. The total built-up area is about 45,000 sq.m, Mr. Naik said.

At the Whitefield transit management centre, parking facility will be available for 425 cars and 1,000 two-wheelers. Built at a cost of Rs. 37 crore, this centre has a built-up area of 28,733 sq.m on a 12,515 sq.m of land. A bus depot and a bus terminal are under operation there, Mr. Naik said.

The Domlur centre is relatively small and does not have a bus depot. However, it can offer parking facility for 250 cars and 800 two-wheelers. It has come up on 5,424 sq.m of land with a built-up area of 8,166 sq. m. Three bus bays at the terminal can accommodate 16 buses at a time.

Mr. Naik said that the TTMCs offer five broad facilities — park and ride; bus maintenance; bus terminal; passenger amenities and office space.

The centres built under the JNNURM scheme receive 35 per cent of the project fund from the Union Government while the State Government contributes 15 per cent; the balance is borne by the corporation.

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