Cost escalation and delays haunt Bengaluru Metro project

“Every day my journey to work feels like a puzzle with too many pieces,” says Hastha Shetty, a resident of Hulimavu in south Bengaluru. “I take an auto from my home to Jayadeva station, board the Yellow Line, change to the Green Line at R.V. Road, change again at Majestic to the Purple Line, get down at Cubbon Park, and then take another auto to reach my office on Lavelle Road. It takes me nearly one hour and 50 minutes. If I book a cab from home, I can reach in about 50 minutes. I keep wondering, what exactly is the purpose of the metro if it cannot make daily commute easier?”

For Shetty, who has been working in a private firm in Bengaluru’s central business district for the past four years, the metro was supposed to be the solution to the city’s notorious traffic congestion. Instead, her commute has become an example of the challenges many residents face while navigating the city’s expanding but still incomplete metro network.

“I have been waiting for the Pink Line for almost five years. When it becomes operational, I can travel directly towards M.G. Road from Bannerghatta Road without all these changes. But the project keeps getting delayed. The metro has not yet expanded across the city in a way that truly serves commuters. Then how has it already become the most expensive metro system in the country?” she questions.

Her questions reflect a wider debate around the Namma Metro which has become both one of India’s largest and costliest urban rail projects, even as concerns persist over ridership, connectivity and planning priorities.

A costly network with limited reach

Today, Bengaluru has India’s second-largest metro network, with around 96 km of operational track and 83 stations. As much as ₹67,460 crore has already been spent on building this infrastructure across multiple phases.

Urban mobility experts argue that the problem lies not merely in delays or costs, but in how the metro system was planned.

Senior transport expert M.N. Srihari says the network presents a paradox. “Bengaluru today has India’s most expensive metro system, yet it remains among the most underutilised. When the metro was first proposed, the promise was that it would significantly reduce congestion and encourage people to shift from private vehicles to public transport. But despite spending thousands of crores, Bengaluru’s traffic still ranks among the worst in the world.”

According to Srihari, the primary issue lies in route prioritisation and planning gaps. “In many cases, the metro lines were built first in areas where demand was comparatively lower, while major employment corridors like Outer Ring Road had to wait for years. Public transport infrastructure must follow commuter demand. Instead, what we saw was a mismatch between where people travel daily like Electronics City or Outer Ring Road and where the metro lines were initially laid like the M.G. Road, Malleswaram, Basavanagudi Jayanagar,” he explains.

“When commuters cannot conveniently access the metro from their homes or workplaces, they simply continue using their cars or two-wheelers,” he added.

Another major issue, he says, is the lack of seamless first- and last-mile connectivity. “Even today, reaching many metro stations requires multiple modes of transport: autos, buses, or long walks. If commuters have to change trains twice and then take another auto to reach their workplace, the metro loses its advantage. Public transport must reduce travel time and complexity, not add to it.”

Evidence supporting this argument emerged from a study conducted by the Bengaluru Political Action Committee (B-PAC) in 2023 titled #Personal2Public. The survey found that 95% of private vehicle users in Bengaluru said they would be willing to shift to the metro if reliable last-mile connectivity was available.

The findings suggested that improving feeder services, pedestrian access, cycling infrastructure, and bus connectivity could dramatically increase ridership. However, even as such connectivity challenges remain unresolved, metro fares have been revised upward last year.

Several routes witnessed sharp fare increases, in some cases up to 100%, raising concerns that it could discourage new riders.

Cost escalation across phases

Major criticism relates to the rapid escalation in project costs across different phases of the metro. A retired official of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), speaking on condition of anonymity, explained how expenses increased significantly over time.

According to the official, Phase 1 of Namma Metro, covering 42.3 km, initially had a sanctioned cost of ₹6,395 crore in 2005. By the time the project was completed in 2017, the final expenditure had risen to approximately ₹14,405 crore, more than a 100% increase.

The escalation is attributed to construction delays, technical challenges during underground tunnelling, design changes, and route extensions. The pattern continued with Phase 2, which originally had a budget of ₹26,405 crore and was expected to be completed by 2019. However, the project has seen its cost rise to ₹40,425 crore, an increase of more than 53%.

“Delays in construction, inflation in raw material prices, increased land acquisition costs, and interest payments on foreign loans have all contributed to the rise in costs,” the official said. Another significant component of metro expenditure is rolling stock, the trains themselves. “In Phase 1, about 150 coaches were procured at a cost of roughly ₹1,600 crore,” the official said. “For Phase 3, the system will require around 318 coaches, and the cost of procurement alone could exceed ₹3,000 crore.”

A large portion of the funding for Bengaluru Metro has come through international loans. Financial assistance has been extended by institutions such as the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the Asian Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, and KfW Development Bank of Germany.

Mr. Srihari says this financing structure, given interest and repayment obligations, makes it even more important to ensure that the metro operates efficiently and attracts a high number of users. “When projects are financed largely through loans, delays automatically increase financial pressure because interest keeps accumulating. If construction timelines are extended by several years, the final project cost can rise dramatically,” he says.

He also suggests that metro agencies should adopt innovative revenue models to reduce dependence on fares and debt. “Globally, metro systems rely heavily on Land Value Capture (LVC) mechanisms. When a metro line is built, property values around stations increase significantly. Governments can capture a portion of that increase through development charges, commercial leasing, transit-oriented development, and better utilisation of station areas. If such strategies are implemented effectively, they can help offset construction costs and keep commuter fares affordable.”

Bengaluru Metro is not only expensive to build, it is also among the costliest metro systems for commuters in India. Recent fare revisions have increased the cost of several routes, drawing criticism from passenger groups.

Transport experts warn that higher fares could discourage potential users, especially when last-mile connectivity remain unresolved. “Public transport must remain economically attractive compared to private vehicles. If fares keep rising while convenience remains limited, commuters will simply continue using their cars or bikes,” said Krishna Prasad, a Bengaluru-based metro and railway activist.

The planning gap

Beyond costs and fares, experts say the choice of routes in the early phases of the metro project created long-term challenges. The construction of Namma Metro began in 2007, and the first operational stretch opened in 2011. Over the years, new corridors were gradually added.

However, many of the city’s largest employment centres were not included in the early phases. This planning gap became evident when the Purple Line was extended to Whitefield in 2023. The extension immediately resulted in a ridership increase of around 2.5 to 3 lakh passengers per day, according to BMRCL data.

A similar trend was observed after the Yellow Line connecting Electronics City opened in August 2025, with daily ridership crossing 60,000 passengers within weeks. These increases suggested that metro connectivity to major employment hubs significantly boosts usage.

Yet another critical corridor the Outer Ring Road (ORR), which houses some of Bengaluru’s largest technology parks is expected to receive operational metro connectivity only by 2027.

Rajkumar Dugar, founder of the citizen group Citizens for Citizens (C4C), believes that planning decisions may have been influenced by political considerations rather than commuter demand.

“The areas that generate the highest metro ridership are typically those with large employment clusters and daily office commuters. But many of these areas had to wait years for metro connectivity. The result is that people who would have been the primary users of the system simply could not use it because the line did not exist in their corridor,” he said.

Dugar said that the Bengaluru Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) was created precisely to prevent ad-hoc political interference in large transport projects. “The whole idea behind BMLTA is to have a single empowered body that evaluates transport proposals and decides what is in the best interest of the city. Unfortunately, the authority has not been fully empowered yet, and we continue to see politicians directly intervening in projects and pushing for route changes or extensions in their constituencies,” he said.

“Whenever such interventions happen after a project has already been sanctioned, it leads to unnecessary proposals, design revisions and delays. Ideally, any proposal or suggestion must be placed before BMLTA, and the authority should decide whether to approve or reject it based on technical and mobility considerations. Politicians should approach the BMLTA rather than directly interfering in execution,” he added.

A retired official associated with the metro project said that political pressure often plays a role in shaping metro priorities. “Elected representatives begin lobbying for metro connectivity in their constituencies. Naturally, every politician wants the metro to reach their area first because it is seen as a major development project. But when such pressures influence planning, the alignment and prioritisation of corridors can change. Ideally, routes should be designed purely on the basis of commuter demand, population density, and travel patterns. When political considerations override, it can lead to delays, revisions in project design, and sometimes even inefficient route selection,” the official explained.

Despite metro, congestion remains severe

Meanwhile, despite the expansion of the metro network, Bengaluru’s traffic congestion remains severe. The latest TomTom Traffic Index ranked the city among the most congested urban areas in the world. Data from the Karnataka Transport Department shows that the number of registered vehicles in Bengaluru increased from around one crore in 2020–21 to nearly 1.23 crore by April 2025.

Much of this growth has occurred alongside the concentration of employment in a few major clusters particularly Electronics City, the Whitefield–ITPL corridor, and the 17-km Outer Ring Road technology belt.

Metro delays due challenges

Officials from the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) acknowledge that the project has faced challenges, but say steps are being taken to improve efficiency and expand coverage. A senior BMRCL official said that cost escalation is common in large infrastructure projects due to multiple external factors.

“Metro construction in a dense city like Bengaluru involves complex engineering challenges, especially during underground tunnelling and land acquisition. Delays can occur due to geological conditions, shifting utilities, legal disputes, and coordination with multiple agencies. These factors sometimes extend timelines and increase costs,” the official said.

“We are increasingly tracking construction progress, manage equipment, and ensure better coordination between contractors,” the official added. BMRCL says future phases of the metro will focus more on connectivity to employment hubs, integration with bus networks, and improved last-mile services.