2023 deadline to quadruple track from Cantonment to Whitefield

Delay of over 20 years sees estimated cost rise from ₹137.64 crore to ₹490 crore

The inordinate delay — by more than two decades — in executing the quadrupling of railway tracks from the city centre to Whitefield has resulted in the project cost rising by over 250%. South Western Railways has now set 2023 as the deadline to complete the project, but at an estimated cost of ₹490 crore. This is despite reducing the length of line that has to be quadrupled. When the project was conceptualised in 1997-98, Railways had proposed to quadruple the track from KSR-Bengaluru-Whitefield (23km) at an estimated cost of ₹137.64 crore. However, it failed to take off and faced several hurdles. One was the acquisition of buildings including a high-rise between KSR-Bengaluru and Cantonment. Over time , traffic density increased on the existing tracks and SWR revisited the project in 2018.