With significant focus on public transport in the budget. Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa on Thursday, 5th March said “Public transport systems need to be strengthened and extended in order to reduce traffic density in Bengaluru,” he announced that Rs 500 crore would be earmarked for the long-pending Bengaluru suburban rail project in 2020-21.
Though, the project, which is expected to cost Rs 18,000 crore, is yet to be approved by the central cabinet committee on economic affairs, the finance minister has assured the state government adequate budget allocation for the project.
“This project will be a major step in the direction of developing a public transport system in Bengaluru,” he said. The state government has also decided to shoulder 50 per cent of the project expenditure for the doubling of Byappanahalli Hosur and Yeshwantpur-Channasandra rail tracks. Earlier, it had insisted on 20:20 model with the railways, saying the remaining 60 per cent of the funding requirement should be fulfilled through loans. This became a sticking point, delaying the work.