HYDERABAD: In a bid to make Foot Over Bridges (FoBs) across the city more pedestrian-friendly and ensure their optimal use, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has decided to hand over the maintenance of 23 FoBs to private agencies under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. The selected private developer will operate on a Maintain, Operate, Advertise and Transfer (MOAT) basis for five years.
These 23 FoBs were constructed to enhance pedestrian safety in busy commercial areas and to ensure smooth vehicular movement. However, GHMC officials noted that only a tiny percentage of pedestrians currently use them, mainly due to poor maintenance and non-functional elevators, escalators and lighting.
To address these issues, GHMC will hand over the FoBs to private agencies on an “as-is” basis. The city’s existing FoBs will be divided into individual packages, with each package comprising one FoB. Locations include Moosapet, Shapur Nagar, IDPL Colony, Banjara Hills Road No. 1, Punjagutta traffic signal, ESI Hospital, NMDC Masab Tank, Khairatabad, Malkam Cheruvu, St Anna School (Secunderabad), Neredmet X Road, Budvel Railway Station, Deepthisrinagar, Airport Road beside AG College Gate, Kattedan, Baba Nagar, Hassan Nagar, National Police Academy, AS Rao Nagar, Rangareddy Court (Kothapet), Ramanthapur, NTR Gardens, Dilsukhnagar near Chandana Brothers, and J P Cinemas in Chanda Nagar. The MOAT proposal was approved by the GHMC Standing Committee on Thursday evening.
Under the agreement, the agency must provide essential amenities such as adequate lighting inside the FoB, at staircases, elevators, escalators and the areas beneath. A QR code-based complaint redressal system will be introduced to enable citizens to lodge complaints easily, with updates provided once the issue is resolved. Each FoB will also be equipped with a minimum of five CCTV cameras, including one inside each elevator. The live feed will be accessible to both the GHMC and the Traffic police control rooms.
Lifts and escalators will remain operational from 6 am to midnight. The agency will also be responsible for maintaining all structural components and supporting infrastructure, such as staircases, lighting systems (preferably solar-powered), and elevators and escalators.