Comments on: Bangalore’s Airport/Traffic Woes

By: Vinay

Vinay — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 12:56:26 +0000

Hmm I just can’t understand why John K said that Trivandrum airport is better than Cochin..He might be blind..Cochin aiport is far far and much better than Trivandrum airport..It is huge when compared to TVM and also flight options are the best in Kochi..One has to waste one day for flight back to Mumbai from Tvm..It is rural and connectivity is worst in tvm

By: John K.

John K. — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 08:46:39 +0000

Cochin airport was the worst I had ever been to. The building looked odd and the crowd suffocating. Looked like most of them are workers to Gulf countries and what more to tell. Maybe I would suggest Chennai or Trivandrum airport which is better than Cochin.

Bangalore new airport is pretty good than the old HAL except for the long distance. For international flights, the travel time to the airport doesnot matter as the ambience is good.

By: paul j

paul j — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 11:12:11 +0000

I recently flew in and out of cochin airport. It was an enjoyable experience. It is neither big nor small and efficient enough. The approach roads are better than the national highway. The duty free was small, cheap (well cheaper than Heathrow)and sufficient ( It had the usual ferrero Rochers and Chivas Regal). The minor problems were made by the passengers ( if we don’t form a que, drop off vehicles parked where ever they want for as long as they please and jostle whenever a crowd is formed there is not much point in complaining about the management of the airports). So perhaps what our airports need (along with long term vision) is proper crowd control.

By: louiecypher

louiecypher — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 19:03:26 +0000

I wonder if and when there will ever be a train connection to the airport. It would be a much better option, and would greatly reduce traffic.

That would take too much forethought. We're only good at repairing the tracks the Brits left us. This issue with traffic into the city center is no surprise. People were wondering aloud about this as soon as the location of the airport was announced years back. Getting access rights from property owners (eminent domain) is next to impossible.

By: vs

vs — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 18:14:39 +0000

I wonder if and when there will ever be a train connection to the airport. It would be a much better option, and would greatly reduce traffic.

By: Mytri

Mytri — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 01:58:29 +0000

There is only one airport now, the new one at Devanahalli called BIAL. It is supposed to be well-connected to major points in the city through volvo busses that are reasonably priced. The old airport has been closed to all public traffic.

By: anil

anil — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 23:58:14 +0000

Can any one tell me from mumbai to Bangalore Domestic flight where it will go whether new airport or old

By: cookiebrown

cookiebrown — Tue, 27 May 2008 19:27:47 +0000

"Checked in", not "checked"

By: cookiebrown

cookiebrown — Tue, 27 May 2008 19:25:16 +0000

I too flew into the new airport on the first day of its operation. Construction is still going on outside of the main building. The terminal itself could have used a good wash in preparation for its first day of operation, and fit and finish, while typical for Bangalore, could be a lot better, if one is to be picky. But all in all, quite impressive-it is a modern terminal-and that it was functional on the first scheduled day (there were nine flights that arrived close in time to mine) is creditable. It took me an hour+ to get into town (Malleswaram) by bus. But all the delays were the usual heavy city traffic. The highway ride was quick. It was obvious that the bus driver was getting used to highway driving-he would honk incessantly if there was another vehicle on the road, even if it was a mile away on a different lane.

This morning, I took the domestic flight to Bombay. It took me 25 minutes to get to the airport, and 10 to be checked and through security. Wonderful airport experience, and not just by India standards.

They really should was the place, though, and somebody obviously cut corners buying a PA system for the airport. Announcements were unintelligible.

By: hema

hema — Mon, 26 May 2008 15:58:01 +0000

I flew into the new Bangalore airport on the 1st day of its operation. It took me 4 hours to get home after the flight landed...phew! The aerobridge and ladder took quite a while to arrive and properly connect and then the luggage arrival was another story. One good thing was the customs guys didn't even bother to rescan the baggage and let me just walk through. And also There weren't the usual pushy baggage assistants who used to rip off some money whether you needed help or not. The taxi guys in this area also seemed to be less pushy. The 'Vayu Vajra' shuttle bus seems to be a good option to get to the airport.

I was not that impressed with the facilities in the new airport. For something that was built recently, they could have added some more facilities like the Changi airport.

The old HAL airport used to be a clean and less crowded one when i was a kid. That whole area used to be sparsely populated and green, and getting to the airport and parking the car used to take just 10 min.

The devanahalli airport and the area around it would definitely become crowded very soon ..esply at the rate bangalore is expanding. I guess lack of water supply is one thing that is stopping from office, hotels and other things to crop up around it. For now I enjoyed the view of large stretches of green fields while the plane landed.