74-Km Bangalore Peripheral Ring Road Plan Stalls Again: Third Tender Fails To Attract Bidders For PRR

The proposed Bangalore Peripheral Ring Road (PRR), a 74-kilometer circular highway with eight lanes and six service lanes, faces another setback as the third tender for its construction failed to attract any qualified bids, according to the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA).

The project, floated in January with a cost of Rs 27,000 crore, has now seen three unsuccessful attempts to secure a bidder, following two previous tenders last year.

Designed to alleviate traffic congestion and improve connectivity, the PRR will encircle the city's peripheries, traversing through 10 major junctions and over 100 minor intersections. It strategically includes 16 flyovers at key locations such as Hesarghatta Road, Old Madras Road, Whitefield Road, Channasandra Road, and Hosur Road.

First proposed in 2006, the project was planned to be executed on a design, build, finance, operate, and transfer (DBFOT) basis.

BDA engineer-member H R Shantarajanna stated, "In the third tender, a Kenya-based company participated, but they did not qualify in the technical bidding," according to the Times of India. The firm had experience with a Rs 6,000 crore project, falling short of the required Rs 12,000 crore experience. Additionally, rising land acquisition costs have tripled, contributing to significant delays.

Initially estimated at Rs 14,000 crore, including Rs 8,000 crore for land acquisition and Rs 6,000 crore for development, the project's cost was revised to Rs 27,000 crore, factoring in Rs 21,000 crore for land acquisition due to demands for compensation per the 2013 Land Acquisition Act.

The bidder is expected to arrange the entire capital for the project and recover the investment by collecting tolls for 50 years, along with advertisement rights along the corridor, as per BDA.

With no successful bids, BDA is now considering alternative funding strategies.

In a recent meeting, BDA discussed raising a Rs 15,000 crore loan and seeking additional government support or potentially handing the project over to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

In 2016, NHAI had proposed to build a 60-metre wide PRR, but BDA did not accept the offer.

This ambitious project is set to feature 16 flyovers, 10 overpasses, and 12 underpasses, enhancing the city's transportation network. Additionally, the plan includes bridges over seven water bodies, including prominent ones like Chikkatogur Lake, Gunjur Lake, and Jarakabande Lake, further facilitating seamless connectivity.

To tackle traffic intricacies, the project incorporates six cloverleaf-type over bridges, providing a solution for efficient crisscrossing without congestion.

Designs made public by the BDA showcase a 100-m-wide greenfield expressway, featuring green spaces, utilities, underground cables, footpaths, cycle tracks, and drains.

The main carriageway, boasting eight lanes, will be flanked by service roads on both sides, with a broad median reserved for potential future integration with the metro project.

The project covers a length of 65.95 km between Hosur Road and Tumakuru Road, with an additional 3.4 km near Madanayakanahalli and 4.08 km near Hebbagodi to link existing roads seamlessly into the PRR network.

As BDA deliberates its next steps, the fate of the PRR project hangs in the balance, with critical decisions needed to move forward and address the city's growing traffic congestion.