Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 28 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Tejasvi Surya on Tuesday met Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar at his residence to discuss the proposed Bengaluru Tunnel Road project.
Speaking to reporters after his meeting, Surya described the discussion as "very cordial and meaningful," and said it focused on long-term solutions to decongest Bengaluru. He emphasised that the city's mobility planning should prioritise public transport over car-centric infrastructure.
Surya said he urged the state government to reconsider spending large sums on the proposed tunnel road and instead expand metro and suburban rail networks.
"I have requested that the amount of money that is being proposed to be spent on the car-only tunnel project be spent on more mass rapid transport systems, like the metro. The purpose of our policy should be to move more people, move more passengers, than moving more cars," Surya told reporters.
He said that according to the government's own Detailed Project Report, the tunnel road would not carry as many commuters as a metro line along the same corridor could.
"I have also impressed upon him that, according to the government's own DPR, about 1,800 vehicles can travel per hour per direction in the tunnel road, but if the same effort is made to build an MRTS or a metro rail project, close to 69,000 people can be transported in the same one hour in that direction," he said.
Calling public transport, the "only sustainable solution" for Bengaluru's traffic crisis, Surya said Shivakumar agreed in principle.
"We have discussed in detail how public transport and increasing the public transport footprint in Bengaluru is the only sustainable way for effective commute and mobility in the city... The only sustainable solution for Bengaluru is public transport, and he wholeheartedly agrees that metro and suburban trains are the only ways to decongest the city in the long term," he said.
The BJP MP continued that he has proposed several alternative solutions to Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar to address Bengaluru's traffic congestion, including strengthening public transport on the Outer Ring Road (ORR), empowering mobility coordination agencies, and prioritising pedestrian infrastructure.
Detailing his suggestions, Surya said ORR -- one of the city's most congested stretches -- can be immediately improved with dedicated loop bus services between existing metro terminals.
"On the ORR, which is the most congested bottleneck area, today we have two metro stations at two ends -- KR Puram metro station on one end and Silk Board station on the yellow line. Between these two stations, if dedicated once-in-five-minute or once-in-ten-minute loop buses are made with a dedicated bus lane in the ORR, it will greatly help a lot of people easily reach their offices and bring down the commute time," the MP told reporters.
Surya said he urged the Deputy CM to appoint a chairperson for the Bengaluru Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) and empower it to coordinate between all agencies involved in transport planning.
"BMLTA is the most important agency which will coordinate between different transport parastatals in the city... BMLTA should get a chairperson and BMLTA should be empowered," he said.
The BJP leader added that world-class footpaths and road upgrades must be taken up in mission mode, stressing that urban mobility is not only about vehicles but also about pedestrian safety and accessibility.
Sharing his long-term vision, Surya said Bengaluru needs 300 km of metro with a three-minute frequency and 300 km of suburban rail to shift commuters from private vehicles to mass transit truly.
He reiterated his opposition to the proposed tunnel road project, saying funds must be diverted to "move more people" instead of constructing car-centric infrastructure.
"Our objection to the tunnel project is not just environmental. Money should be spent to move more people, come up with sustainable solutions -- not short-term band-aid fixes," Surya said, while noting that Shivakumar assured no damage would occur to Lalbagh if any project moves forward.
Calling the interaction "very productive," Surya said Shivakumar invited him to a follow-up meeting with officials, Outer Ring Road industries and CEOs next week.
"He almost took out an hour and sat with me to discuss sustainable solutions for Bengaluru... I hope this bipartisan approach to fixing Bengaluru's traffic yields results," he said.
Tejasvi Surya has strongly opposed the proposed Bengaluru Tunnel Road project, arguing that it poses grave environmental and heritage threats while offering little public benefit.
Earlier, representing a PIL in the Karnataka High Court, he flagged that the tunnel alignment passes beneath the iconic 3,000-million-year-old Lalbagh Rock, endangering a protected geological treasure and requiring the acquisition of about 6.5 acres inside Lalbagh Botanical Garden.
Surya asserted that no legally mandatory Environmental Impact Assessment has been conducted and cited the recent Uttarakhand tunnel disaster as a stark reminder of the risks of rushing tunnel projects without proper safety studies.