Bangalore City railway station

Bangalore City Railway Station, officially Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna (Bengaluru Station), also known as Bengaluru City railway station (2014–2016),[1] (station code: SBC[2]) is the main railway station serving the city of Bangalore, Karnataka, India. It is the fifth busiest inter-city railway station in South India after Chennai Central, Chennai Egmore, Tambaram railway station and Chennai Beach. It is the busiest railway station in South Western Railway zone of Indian Railways.

Bangalore City
Express train, Passenger train, Commuter rail and Goods railway station
View of the main entrance
Other names	Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna (Bengaluru Station)
Location	Railway Station Road, Gubbi Cross, Bangalore, Karnataka, 560023 India
Coordinates	12°58′42″N 77°34′10″E
Elevation	896.920 metres (2,942.65 ft)
Owned by	Indian Railways
Operated by	South Western Railways
Line(s)	Bangalore–Arsikere–Hubli–Miraj line Chennai Central–Bangalore City line Mysore–Bangalore railway line Guntakal–Bangalore section
Platforms	10
Tracks	25
Connections	Kempegowda Bus Station Namma Metro Purple Line Namma Metro Green Line
Construction
Structure type	At–ground
Parking	Available
Other information
Status	Functioning
Station code	SBC
Zone(s)	South Western Railway zone
Division(s)	Bangalore
History
Opened	1968
Electrified	Yes
Previous names	Bangalore City railway station (1968–2014) Bangalore City railway station (2014–2016)
Passengers
1,50,000/day
Services
Preceding station Indian Railways Following station Terminus Chennai Central–Bangalore City line Krishnarajapuram towards Chennai Central
Location
Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna (Bengaluru Station).

Location

It is located across the Kempegowda Bus Station. The station has 10 platforms and three entrances.

History

The establishment of the British cantonment in 1809 made Bangalore a crucial military hub in South India. Soon enough, a need arose to establish more transportation links between the new civil and military outpost with the colonial administrative headquarters in Madras. In the 1840s, proposals for these railway lines were debated in the railway lines were debated in the British Parliament, a move supported by traders and shipping companies. In Bangalore, it was Sir Mark Cubbon who pushed for the development of the railway link during his tenure as the Commissioner of Mysuru and Kodagu. He proposed a railroad project connecting Mysuru and Madras through Bangalore and Calicut but the plan was stalled. The line was initially meant for military purposes -for transporting soldiers, grains and ammunition but was later made open to the public. Lewin Bentham Bowring took over as the commissioner of Mysuru and the land for the railway project was donated by the Mysuru government. The train that chugged from Cantonment was called `Bangalore Mail', which is the oldest running train in Indian Railways. The year 1864 also saw other crucial developments in Bangalore. The railway link was a turning point in the history of the city as it encouraged immigration from the rest of the country. Trade witnessed a huge boost, many potters from Madras also settled down in the Cantonment around the same time, leading to the establishment of Pottery Town.[3]

In 1944, the rail network was nationalised. On 14 April 1951, the three major networks administered by the erstwhile Madras and Southern Maratha Railway, the Southern Indian Railway and Mysore State Railway were joined to form Southern Railway.

Due to historical reasons, the headquarters of the erstwhile Mysore State Railway was located in Mysore though Bangalore was the hub of operations. To improve administration and enhance monitoring, Bangalore Division was inaugurated on 27 July 1981.[4]

The metre-gauge lines bound to Hubli, Mysore were converted into broad gauge in the 1990s.

Platforms

Platforms 1 to 7 connect to the Chennai and Salem railway lines. On platforms 8 to 10, service trains arrive via Yeshwantpur from Hubballi-Dharwad. Platforms 1 to 4 terminate at Bangalore. On platforms 5 to 10, service trains depart towards Mysuru. There are railway lines between Platforms 4 and 5 that are used as the railway yard. There are 5 railway lines passing from Bangalore City railway station – to Hyderabad via Guntakal, Chennai via Krishnarajapuram, Salem via Hosur, Mysuru, Hubballi-Dharwad via Tumkur, Birur. The Bangalore–Chennai railway line via Bangalore Cantonment, Bangarpet, is fully electrified and open for traffic. The Bangalore–Mysore line is also doubled and electrified.

Connections

The railway station is served by City Railway Station metro station on the Namma Metro's Purple Line, which opened on 30 April 2016. Later that year, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) decided to construct a foot overbridge from the metro station until the boundary of the railway station, while the South Western Railway, would complete the rest of the work.[5][6] The foot overbridge connecting platform 10 with the metro station was opened on 18 February 2019. The BMRC reported that monthly ridership at the metro station was 175,000 passengers per day prior to opening the bridge, and increased to 250,000 two months after its opening.[7]

The railway station is also served by Kempegowda Bus Station.

Important trains

The important trains originating from Bangalore city station are Bangalore Mail, Karnataka Express, Rani Chennamma Express, Chennai Shatabdi Express, Rajdhani Express, Lal Bagh Express, Brindavan Express and Tippu Express.

See also

• Mysore–Bangalore railway line

Bangalore City railway station shown on map

References

1. "South Central Railway Press Release". South Central Railway zone. 3 February 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
2. "Station Code Index" (PDF). Portal of Indian Railways. 2015. p. 46. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
3. Shekhar, Divya. "Date with History: In 1864, first train chugged from Cantonment to Jolarpettai". The Economic Times. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
4. Phadnis, Renuka (2 August 2014). "Bangalore's rail connectivity turns 150 years". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
5. "Wait for FOB to City Railway Station gets longer". The Hindu. 7 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
6. "Wait for metro-city railway station bridge gets longer". The Hindu. 9 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
7. "Bridge linking boosts Bengaluru metro ridership". Deccan Herald. 2 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.

External links

• Bangalore City railway station at the India Rail Info