For years, the Byatarayanapura junction remained one of the most congested spots on the Hebbal-Yelahanka route. | Photo credit: ALLEN EGENUSE J
Commuters from Airport Road via Byatarayanapura and Mall of Asia towards the city and vice versa, who until recently had to take a detour of over three kilometers to turn around, can now complete the same movement in about 1.5 kilometres.
The Bengaluru North City Corporation, in collaboration with the traffic police, has reconfigured the entry and exit points along the Byatarayanapura-GKVK corridor, a long-standing problem stretch where traffic from the service road, main road and Mall of Asia frontage used to converge into a single choke point.
For years, the Byatarayanapura junction remained one of the most congested spots on the Hebbal-Yelahanka route. Vehicles from Kodigehalli and Sahakar Nagar merged from the service road, while traffic from the L&T side often crossed the one-way to avoid the long bend ahead. With no crossing allowed at the Jakkur signal, commuters heading towards the city or Amruthahalli were forced to travel to Allalasandra before turning around, a detour that caused daily violations.
The civic body has now changed the movement pattern by creating an exit after the mall and a new entrance near GKVK. This allows motorists, especially those from L&T flats, to come back much earlier than before. “The proximity of the new turn has directly curtailed driving in the opposite direction, which has become routine as the earlier turn was several kilometers away,” Pommala North Corporation Commissioner Sunil Kumar told The Hindu.
Officials from the corporation said that though the realignment was introduced on a temporary trial basis, the corporation plans to propose to make it permanent after consulting NHAI, which manages part of the stretch, BMRCL, which is carrying out metro construction work in the area, and the traffic police.
As part of the reorganisation, signaling on the service road near the Byatarayanapura junction has been switched off to allow continuous movement towards the airport. Those heading towards Amruthahalli or GKVK can still take the regular route and detour from the road. Meanwhile, vehicles from the service road can no longer get into other lanes, one of the former sources of ongoing congestion. They now enter from the first opening, which directs them to the main road towards Mall of Asia without clashing with other streams, officials said.
The new bend at GKVK initially caused hesitation on the part of the traffic police, especially since the stretch often witnesses surges during weekends and events. Officials describe the decision to open it as a “calculated risk” but one that is paying off so far. We have shifted the load from one congested junction – Byatarayanapura – to two manageable points – GKVK junction and Jakkur, the official added.
“Earlier, whenever we tried to drive towards Airport Road, vehicles from the Mall and surrounding areas would come on the wrong side just to avoid the long u-turn. Now that the diversion is in place, wrong side driving has reduced a lot. Many people are still unaware of the new change, but slowly the flow is improving, you can really see the difference on most days,” said Srikhant M, a daily commuter.
Published – 05 Dec 2025 21:50 IST
