New Delhi, Mar 22: Keeping in mind the growing pressure of the suburban traffic in Bengaluru, the railways have sanctioned a quadrupling project with a provision of two additional lines from Bengaluru Cantt to Whitefield at a cost of Rs 492.87 crore. The 25 km stretch will involve six most important stations--Bengaluru Cantonment, Bengaluru East, Baiyyapannahalli, Krishnarajapuram, Hoodi and Whitefield.

The project is set to benefit 62,000 daily commuters in this section by making commuting within Bengaluru easy and faster, said a statement issued by the Railway Ministry. The project will be completed within two to three years. It will be a boon for those belonging to the IT hub of Whitefield, it said. At present, 146 and 94 trains are running from Bengaluru and Yesvantpur stations, respectively, out of which 122 are of suburban nature catering to commuters.

A major portion of the suburban trains are running in Bengaluru-Whitefield section. In view of increasing commuter requirement, in last one and half year itself, 26 suburban services have been introduced along with seven long distance trains in Bengaluru area, the statement said. Besides, four suburban services between KSR Bengaluru- Baiyyappanahalli and Baiyappanahalli- Bengaluru have been introduced, it added.