HYDERABAD: In a major respite to commuters, the Fatehnagar Road-over-Bridge, which is one of the oldest flyovers in the city, is set to be expanded with the Railways giving clearance for building a new RoB parallel to the
existing one.
For decades, there has been demand to widen this flyover as it has turned out to be a major bottleneck that results in traffic slowing to a crawl during peak hours. Thousands of commuters going towards Ameerpet, Begumpet, Yousufguda from Balanagar use this flyover on a daily basis.
The traffic flow is frustratingly slow between 9 am and 10. 30 am and 5 pm and 7 pm when motorists are stuck on the flyover for prolonged periods as the width of the road is so narrow that an auto and a four-wheeler cannot move side-by-side.
To ease the traffic congestion, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has sought permission from railway authorities to construct a new RoB parallel to the existing one. Following the nod by the railways, the GHMC has started issuing land acquisition notices to shops and business establishments. GHMC officials said that the land acquisition process would take four to five months.
They said that the new RoB would be at least 12 feet wide.“We plan to construct a new flyover at a cost of Rs 60 crore. Traffic from Fatehnagar towards Balkampet will move on the new bridge, while commuters in the other direction will travel on the existing one. Once land acquisition is completed, the construction of the flyover would be completed as soon as possible,” said a source in the GHMC.
Apart from expansion, the civic body would carry out necessary repairs to the existing flyover. The railing and pillars of the steps have chipped while the footpath constructed for pedestrians lies in a shambles at many places.