2020 deadline  to decongest busy National Highway-66 in sights

Construction of 196 piles required for the flyover has been completed; 3-tier monitoring system will be used to ensure quality

KOCHI: The Plan-A to decongest the busy National Highway -66 at Kundannoor junction is inching close to 60 per cent of its execution as the officers of Kerala Roads and Bridges Development Corporation (RBDCK) and PWD (NH Wing) are hopeful of completing the flyover work within the stipulated deadline. According to the officers concerned, 58 per cent of the work of Kundannoor flyover is already completed and they are hopeful of meeting the March 31, 2020, deadline.

The officers said in the wake of recent allegations against the quality of work of the Palarivattom flyover, a three-tier monitoring system will be used for ensuring the quality of Kundannoor flyover. The RBDCK was the implementing agency of Palarivattom Flyover as well.

According to an engineer associated with the work, the 196 piles required for the Kundannoor Flyover are already completed. There are a total of 30 pile caps required out of which 25 are already constructed. The total number of piers are 32 out of which 25 are completed.

50 girders out of the total 120 are already cast. There are 15 pier caps required, out of which, 11 are already completed. “The work of pier cap on Aroor side is progressing. Altogether, 58 per cent of the work is completed. The first and second-tier monitoring system is already scrutinising the quality aspects of the work,” said the officer. The work is being executed by Mary Matha Constructions.

The busy Kundannoor Junction is an intersection point of NH 66, NH 966 B, and NH 85. Since the commencement of the Kundannoor flyover work, the junction is witnessing heavy traffic snarls.

The bad state of service road

While coming from Alappuzha side, the heavy queue of vehicles will start one kilometre ahead of the junction. The vehicles going towards Tripunithura side, including heavy container lorries, are finding it more difficult to reach the destination.

Even after taking a U-Turn after crossing the junction, the vehicles will have to travel back to the junction through the service road for almost one kilometre to take the left turn to Tripunithura.

The condition of the service road is pathetic in many areas with broken tiles and deep potholes making it worse for the drivers. Vehicles are moving at a snail’s pace through the service road which hardly can afford two-lane traffic.

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