Bengaluru Kempegowda International Airport’s (BLR Airport) New T2 Terminal will upgrade the airport’s status to one of the best in the world. On November 11, Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, inaugurated the T2, which has no parallel among Indian airports. “Terminal 2 of the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru will add capacity and further convenience. It is a part of our efforts aimed at providing top class infrastructure to our urban centres. The Terminal is beautiful and passenger friendly! Glad to have inaugurated it,” he tweeted following the inauguration.
The new ‘Terminal in a Garden’ is set to boost BLR Airport’s passenger capacity by an additional 25 million annually. The airport’s present annual passenger handling capacity is 5-6 million. On completion of the planned Phase II expansion, T2 will be able to accommodate an additional 20 million passengers per annum in the future. All arrivals have been planned on the ground floor, while departures will happen on the first floor. BIAL tapped into global talent for the new Terminal, which was built at approximately INR 5,000 crore.
Standout Design
According to the airport operator, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) T2 is a dedication to the beautiful city of Bengaluru and was designed to reflect its once-cherished green identity. T2 has been built on four pillars: technological leadership, being a terminal in a garden, environmental and ecological stewardship and celebrating Karnataka’s rich heritage and culture.
Integrated into the design of T2, the cultural diversity and unique art forms of Karnataka and South India are showcased through the gardens, the dynamic environment and art installations. The theme of ‘Naurasa’ unites all the commissioned artworks for T2.
BIAL has built a reputation for implementing cutting-edge technology to enable a seamless and delightful travel experience at BLR Airport; it has reinvented itself with T2 to provide the best possible experience to travellers and visitors.
T2 has been designed as a tribute to the Garden city of Bengaluru, with the passenger experience meant to be a “walk in the garden”. The 255,000 square-meter terminal will be one-of-its-kind in the world in terms of design, features and amenities. It will be a ‘Terminal as a Garden’ — making BLR Airport a natural extension of Bengaluru’s much-heralded green aesthetics. Every passageway throughout T2 will connect travellers with nature. Trees, small gardens, and ponds featuring local and exotic plants will line the interior. Planted bells will hang from the ceiling at the entrance, check-in, and security.
Beyond these spaces, a large indoor garden featuring rammed-earth walls and waterfalls will provide a gateway into the densely landscaped retail space. Passengers will travel through 10,000+ square metres of green walls, hanging and outdoor gardens. There is also a lagoon with a big outdoor garden, a multi-modal transport hub including metro rail, solar panels on the roof, artificial waterfalls, elevated walkways and green seating areas among its special features.
The shopping area will connect to the gates through Terminal 2’s signature space—a vast, three-story “forest belt” designed to create an immersive, calming outdoor experience for departing and arriving passengers alike. From the entrance to the concourse and from the arrival gate to baggage claim, all main indoor spaces display views of the forest belt. The material palette for each indoor area was designed to work in concert with the natural landscape. The walls are made of brick, the floors are covered in natural terrazzo, and the ceiling is finished in engineered bamboo. BLR Airport’s T2 is India’s first airport to access the 5G network with Airtel’s 5G Plus services. Airtel’s 5G Plus network also delivers less carbon emissions over data capacity generated compared to current technology.
Green Ethic
With the combination of the latest construction technology and natural material, the T2 also establishes a new vision for sustainable growth. The airport has already established a benchmark in sustainability with 100% usage of renewable energy across the campus. Fixtures that consume minimal water are installed across T2. During its construction, BIAL avoided using ozone-depleting substances and components that required high-energy input in its manufacturing processes. T2 will be the largest in the world to be pre-certified platinum rating by US GBC (green building council) before commencing operations.
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