No New Namma Metro Construction Starts in Bengaluru in Four and a Half Years

BENGALURU — Namma Metro expansion has hit a prolonged pause, with no new corridors entering the construction phase in Hebbal and across Bengaluru for more than four and a half years due to lagging government approvals.

The last project to break ground in the city's rapid transit network was the extended Airport Line from KR Pura to KIA. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) awarded the contracts for this line in November 2021, and physical construction commenced in early 2022.

Since that project began, no fresh metro line has entered the execution stage. This ongoing delay has shifted the focus of local residents and commuters from the familiar issue of late project commissioning to a more fundamental concern: the complete absence of new transit projects reaching the construction stage.

This halt comes despite a steady rise in travel demand across Bengaluru. Currently, two major metro projects under Phase III and Phase IIIA remain stuck without progress, as they continue to wait in the government's approval pipeline.