Sadahalli underpass construction begins to clear Bengaluru airport road bottleneck

The National Highways Authority of India has commenced construction on a 750-metre, six-lane underpass at Sadahalli Junction on Ballari Road in Bengaluru. The infrastructure initiative is designed to eliminate the sole remaining traffic signal on the primary carriageway leading to Kempegowda International Airport.

For thousands of daily commuters, flyers, and freight operators travelling between the city centre and North Bengaluru, the project targets a chronic bottleneck. Traffic passing through the corridor currently encounters mandatory halts at the junction, which handles dense volumes of vehicles moving towards Devanahalli and neighbouring regions.

Estimated at ₹35 crore, the project execution is scheduled for completion by mid-2027. National Highways Authority of India officials stated that construction is being managed in structured phases to accommodate the heavy volume of vehicles that use the arterial highway daily. More than 1.1 lakh vehicles cross the nearby Sadahalli toll plaza every day, underlining the heavy reliance on this arterial link.

The Bengaluru Traffic Police Department has granted the necessary statutory permissions for executing the structural works on the national highway. Law enforcement authorities confirmed that no major traffic diversions had been enforced at the junction during the initial phase of construction, though motorists have been advised to exercise caution near the active work zone.

In addition to facilitating uninterrupted through traffic for airport passengers, the grade-separated crossing will allow local motorists travelling from Sadahalli and surrounding settlements to move towards the city or Devanahalli without obstruction. The design incorporates parallel service road provisions to handle local access needs alongside the main subterranean corridor.

Work on the Sadahalli project coincides with ongoing highway upgrading efforts along the broader corridor, including sequential service road developments near the Indian Air Force station in Yelahanka. Authorities indicated that subsequent phases of the Yelahanka service road work are slated to proceed following upcoming regional events and land handovers by mass transit agencies.

With construction now underway, project authorities expect to maintain the mid-2027 completion target, subject to local weather patterns and geological conditions. Traffic management teams will review diversion protocols as heavy earthmoving operations progress closer to the main carriageway lanes.