Traffic To Take Its “Toll” Enroute Bangalore International Airport!
It is a well-known fact amongst frequent flyers and Bangalore citizens that the commute to the Bangalore airport, also known as the Kempegowda International Airport(KIA), is long and time-consuming. Adding to this, early mornings and late nights see a lot of jams at the toll booths as there is a high volume of flights operating at KIA during that time.
Well! The ride to the Kempegowda International Airport is about to get a lot longer!
From today, the Devanahalli toll booth will start toll collection for cars that will be heading towrds the Bangalore airport. If cab drivers are to be believed, this situation is going to cause a daily traffic problem, increasing the time to reach the airport.
This decision has been taken by the National Highways Authority of India to prevent reduction in revenues. Previously, people going to the airport used the expressway one way and the recently opened alternative road for their return journey, escaping the toll.
This decision has come under harsh criticism, but the toll operators are confident that the decision will not be taken back. An official working at the toll plaza commented “Everyone will choose to escape paying toll instead of shelling out money during the return trip. The moment an alternative route was made available, this decision became unavoidable.”
The Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce (BCIC), came out strongly against this decision and said that this decision will worsen traffic jams and will dent the city’s image. Mr. Ahmedali, a former BCIC president, along with the BCIC submitted a petition to the National Highways Authority of India(NHAI) and the state government to reverse this decision. They said that there are long traffic ques at the tollbooth during peak hours, in spite of having more lanes.
The toll operators have said, to make things easier, there will be 15 booths available for those heading towards the airport. All booths will be equipped to deal with customers who use FASTag and there will be one dedicated lane for them.
The BCIC is not opposed to toll collection.However, they are adamant that NHAI must ensure smooth movement of the traffic to and from the airport. To do this BCIC has given the following suggestions –
- No More Than 3 Vehicles Should Wait In Any Lane
- Number Of Tolls Should Be Increased And Should Be Operational During Peak Hours
- There Should Be Enough FASTag Lanes For FASTag Vehicles Only
- Promote The Use Of FASTag (Electronic toll collection system in India)
- Collect Toll At The Airport And Pass It On To The Operator At The Toll Plaza
So if you have any flights scheduled from today onwards, Be sure to leave for the airport well in advance.
Wondering what time to leave for the airport? Download the AirWhizz App and get real-time notifications on when to leave for the airport based on live traffic updates and status of your flight.
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