ADILABAD: On NH-44, getting from Adilabad to the Nirmal border is becoming less about the journey and more about navigating one bottleneck after another.
Maintenance and other works along the stretch have been delayed, leaving motorists to deal with diversions, one-way bridges and long queues. The biggest bottleneck is near the Kupti bridge, constructed around 1973, which has now become a weak link on one of the busiest highways connecting north and south India.
Last month, a portion of the Kupti bridge was damaged, forcing police to restrict traffic.
Vehicles were diverted to another bridge operating one-way, causing 20-30-minute delays. The situation worsened on September 5 when two lorries collided near the bridge, killing one person and injuring another. The resulting congestion took nearly two days to clear, officials said.
NH-44 is a major north-south corridor, carrying around 6,000 to 7,000 lorries daily, including heavy vehicles weighing 16 to 17 tonnes.
The Kupti bridge has also been identified by the police as an accident hotspot, with several crashes reported at the location. Police have placed a damaged car near the bridge as a visual warning to motorists, hoping the sight will encourage them to slow down.
Speaking to TNIE, NH-44 project officer Shashikanth said repair works had begun but would take around a month to complete, given the age of the bridge. “The bridge was constructed around 1973, so the repair works will take some time. It will take around one month to complete the repairs. Until the works are completed, there is no other option but to continue with one-way traffic,” he said.