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Ride To Airport Just Got Bumpier And Longer
Posted by Pradeep Sadanapalli | August 14, 2008 | 488 views
(2 votes, average: 4 out of 5)
Loading ...Your commute to the airport just got tougher. Come August 21 and the ride to the airport would be ridden not only with potholes but also an additional detour from the main road, owing to the construction of the PVN Expressway. With only part of the flyover complete so far, officials are now trying to expedite the work, albeit at the price of the commuters’ comfort.
A pillar is being constructed on the Reithibowli junction near Foodworld which once fenced would eat up the already limited road space on that stretch. To hasten the work, Huda has asked traffic police to divert traffic.
So, instead of the Mehdipatmam-Reithibowli-Attapur route, commuters will have to take a detour from Raithu Bazaar to the Amba theatrevegetable market road from August 21 that would lead to the inner ring road connecting the airport. The stretch leading to the airport will be blocked and the opposite stretch of road from the airport to Mehdipatnam will continue to function as normal.
The detour would be far from comfortable. While officials maintain that the distance travelled would remain much the same, the alternative route is already a busy congested bylane. The journey to the airport from this route could become longer, observers say.
This arrangement would continue for two to four months but officials guess it could take even longer. The PVNR Expressway is slated to be ready by April or May, 2009 but unofficial estimates peg the due date two years from now.
Traffic police officials say the poor condition of the airport road is the reason for blocking it. “The roads are already in a bad shape and only a single vehicle can pass through. That’s why we advised public not to use this road,’’ says a senior police official.
The traffic police had even issued an advisory asking motorists to use the Taranaka or the Old City route to the airport. They have even sought the help of the GHMC to do the patching work of this stretch.
Since the pillars are being constructed on the site itself (cast in situ), Huda engineers explain that it requires more time and if the traffic is allowed to move, the process would only become much longer. “About six to seven cast in situ (casting in situation) concreting has to be done. The pillar coming up on the Reithibowli junction is also in situ,’’ says a Huda official, who notes that the whole process would take about two months to complete from the date traffic stops on the stretch.
“The major part of the stretch between Sarojini Devi Eye hospital and Reithibowli is cast in situ and for that we’ll be occupying a major portion of the road. We can manage the traffic but there will be a lot of inconvenience. To avoid that we have requested the police to permit one way traffic,’’ the Huda official notes.
But questions are being raised as to why these pillars that are creating a bottleneck are being constructed now when it could have been done in the end after all remaining flyover work was done. “Cast in situ takes 45 days for each span (between two pillars) and we have to do this sequentially. We can reduce the time this way,’’ says the Huda official.
SOURCES:
Times Of India
Topics: Public Concerns, Govt Failures, Infrastructure |
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