Meeting with Mr Ashok Kheny - **postponed**

Really looking forward to meeting Mr Kheny.

• Incidentally, today's paper has him saying he can complete PRR from Tumkur Road to NH7 in 9 months. And he offers to build 2400 km of expressways in Karnataka. Want to know more about this project proposal.
• Also want to know the policing arrangement for NICE roads - will NICE itself do it, or will he be leaving the job to state police who simply don't have any experience managing high speed roads. Will he organize training for state police so that they can do it. Or will he be game to use the occasion to push for creation of a new karnataka state highway patrol like body?
• And then some small questions, like - whats the plan around the spot where Link Expressway (that connects Bangalore-Mysore e-way to the city) ends inside the city. Does he anticipate crowds at the tollgate there (recall all the news about Gurgaon expressway tollgate)?

I drove on the NICE road between Tumkur road and Magadi Road. It was quite good. The quality and width of the road are amazing to say the least. It is slightly better than some western countries also. That said, NICE website and NICE itself fails on transparency. It would be great if the NICE website could have been designed better / updated frequently. Such a crucial project to the state should do better in communicating about itself to citizens. Please put this point across to Mr Kheny during the meeting. Third, why can Mr Kheny think of a ring road connecting Hosur Road, Sarjapur Road and thence to Whitefield and BIAL? Fourth - perhaps Mr Kheny should think of bidding for overhauling the Shiradi Ghat road with new technology to handle more tonnage or if not even putting other alternative corridors through the ghats into Mangalore.

I would like to join this meeting.  My questions are

a. When does he think the PRR will be done from EC to Peenya?

b. What sort of toll will be charged?

c. He mentions today that he could extend this till NH-7.  any real chance of that happening?

d. Law and order on PRR.  People now speed to 140 kmph on that stretch.  How does he intend to ensure that accident rates are low.

Srivathsa

I will join on 28th if only six.

Cant make it :( By the way does NICE project come under the purview of RTI act?

One thing i want praja representatives to ask Mr Kheny..is.. 1. the NICE expwy will connect blr-mys, but from press it seems like that it will only allow exists in bidadi and in mysore and nowhere else. so if a citizen wants to exit in mandya it is not possible..Why is that restriction? By doing it that way only people who want to end up in mys will use this and the business and people from other intermdiate cities will not benefit..If govt is using any tax payer resource to get this done, it should be in the larger interest of the popolation living in that area...Agree? Pls get this clarified.. Good job team.

Is it possible to have skype or something of that sort so that people travelling could log in?

We can try the following two 1. http://www.rondee.com/sta... 2. http://www.calliflower.co... I havent used them so you may have to pilot it first.

Here is the map showing Mr. Kheny Office at Midford Gardens
View Larger Map Midford House is the address.

Something urgent came up at Mr Khney's end for tomorrow morning. He sincerely apologized for this late notice, and promised to do this next weekend or the one after. The tomorrow morning's meeting stands postponed. He's got some government officials visiting a work site tomorrow morning, he said this came up really late, and he doesn't know how long this thing is going to take. Since its a bit late to plan new time for a meeting tomorrow or day after, lets do it after the holidays.

So, Is the number of people already full? If not, and if this meeting is on a Saturday or Sunday, I would like to make it. thanks Srikanth the Bengaluru blog http://blog.chowchowbath.com ~~ all the things you needed to know ~~

Yesterday night I took a Volvo from Mysore and was sitting behind the driver. Late evenings, SH17 Bangalore-Mysore road becomes full of trucks which goes hapazordally. One slow moving truck overtaking other slow moving truck blocking the whole road. Also lot many 2 wheelers coming on the wrong side as well as driving in a wrong line (diagonal driving without observing the mirror) getting 'almost hit' by overtaking cars and volvos. The width of the existing road is also  narrow for accomodating 2 buses or 1 bus and 1 truck on one side of a lane although it is a 4 lane road. If any of the driver do a mistake, a rub with each other is guaranted.

Keeping all these things in mind, the NICE road should be designed. 2 lane Bangalore-Mysore BMIC road may see similar scenarios of the truck  blockage and 2 wheelers menance. Bangalore-Mysore NICE road should have been atleast 3 lanes and limit trucks only to left 2 lanes. It would be life saver if 2 wheelers are not allowed on the NICE to mix up with the 4 wheeler traffic. If they are allowed, they should be given a dedicated 2-3 meter road on the kerb with lane seperation by physical means.

We from Praja should brief Mr.Kheny with Dr. ASJ's various road design related documents to be implemented on BMIC.

I was also thinking instead of allowing all the vehicles on the BMIC, why not only BMIC high speed buses like Volvos moving people and BMIC Trucks (high speed trucks like Volvo, MAN, Mercedes)  moving all the goods and drivers who are highly skilled and well trained to avoid the chaos (may be this concept is not there in any part of the world, but I was just imagining how to overcome the chaos).