KOCHI: After years of deliberations, the long-pending construction work of the Vathuruthy RoB is finally on the right track. A meeting chaired by Power and Railways Minister Aryadan Mohammed last week has accepted the alignment of the bridge which had been mired in several technicalities. The Naval officials, Cochin Port Trust Chairman and several stakeholders have given their approval, according to Corporation officials.
The meeting took note of several key railway projects and generally assessed the issues hindering railway development in Ernakulam.
The Vathuruthy RoB, which was proposed in 2011, has been in contention for sometime now owing to lack of land and paucity of funds in carrying out the work.
Hibi Eden MLA, who attended the meeting, said that the Cochin Port Trust also agreed to provide land for the project, clearing way to find a permanent solution for one of the longstanding problems in the area. Vathuruthy has boasted of railway lines since the 1930s.
According to K J Sohan, Standing Committee Chairman of the Corporation, who was also present at the high-level meeting along with Mayor Tony Chammany, the agreement on the RoB was vital for the development of the area and for solving the traffic bottlenecks at Vathuruthi. Once the DEMU service is extended to the Cochin Harbour Terminus railway station, an RoB would be inevitable as frequent train services would enhance traffic in the area.
Though a Detailed Project Report and a design were prepared for the Vathuruthy RoB in 2013, it was shot down by the Navy citing security issues. The design of the proposed RoB as per the KITCO design had come in the flying zone of the airport of the Navy at Wellington Island. The last meeting held in 2014 had entrusted the Roads and Bridges Development Corporation (RBDCK) as the nodal agency for the project. As per the new alignment, the proposed ROB begins from the tollbooth near Willingdon Island and lands near Mattanchery old bridge, Sojan explained.
