Bengaluru’s Ambareesh Road, also known as Race Course Road, is set for a public-space upgrade featuring a green corridor, improved footpaths, seating, cycle infrastructure, public toilets and new street lighting, Greater Bengaluru Authority Chief Commissioner Maheshwar Rao has directed officials.
Rao issued the instructions during an inspection of development works in the central municipal area on Monday. The proposed improvements will cover the approximately 900-metre stretch between Maurya Circle and Hare Krishna Junction. White-topping work on the road is almost complete, while work on the footpath and buffer zones is under way.
The chief commissioner directed officials to prepare a comprehensive plan to make the road more attractive and convenient for residents and commuters. The Race Course section near Maurya Junction has sufficient open space, according to the report, and officials were asked to develop a public space there as part of the proposed green corridor.
The plan also includes planting saplings, installing visually appealing street lights and providing seating for people using the area. Since pedestrian and passenger movement is high along the road, Rao instructed officials to take steps to construct public toilets to discourage open urination along the roadside.
Contractors were also directed to build a cycle track beside the footpath. The instructions come as the road’s surface improvement works near completion, while pedestrian facilities and the buffer zone remain under development. The report does not specify a completion date or the estimated cost of the proposed public-space works.
Rao separately reviewed white-topping work on a combined 780-metre stretch covering Malleshwaram Link Road and 5th Cross Road. He directed officials to plan and execute the works in a manner that would provide wider public benefits.
At Platform Road, where white-topping work has been completed, Rao observed that the footpath had not been constructed adequately and ordered officials to correct the deficiencies immediately. He also directed that penalties be imposed on those responsible for vehicles being driven over ramps and damaging pedestrian paths.
Additional Commissioner Venkata Chalapathi and chief engineers Vijay Kumar Haridas and Ravi were present during the inspection, according to the report.
The inspection also covered the ‘Ward One’ development campaign in Bengaluru West. Commissioner Shilpa Nag directed officials to remove abandoned and illegally parked vehicles from roadsides in Attiguppe ward within three days.
Officials were also instructed to penalise those putting up posters on the walls along the Sri Sarvajna underpass and provide officers with mobile-app access to the centralised control and monitoring system for LED street lights in Dr Rajkumar ward.
Other directions included removing electricity poles from footpaths in coordination with BESCOM, taking action against unauthorised advertising hoardings, improving solid-waste management and source-level waste segregation, and creating rainwater-recharge arrangements in parks. The report did not state the timelines for the Ambareesh Road green corridor or the related public-space works.
