KOCHI: The decades-old Kothamangalam municipal bus stand is set for redevelopment, with the municipality initiating the process to construct a new bus stand complex. With the project in the early planning stage, officials, traders and transport workers are awaiting procedural clarity.
The renovation was proposed in the municipality’s annual plan for 2026-27. The budget presented in March allocated Rs 6 crore for demolishing the old building and constructing a new one. As part of the process, the civic body has accepted quotations for the preparation of a detailed project report (DPR), which would determine the project’s final design and implementation.
Kothamangalam serves as an important gateway between Ernakulam and the high ranges of Idukki. The town has three bus terminals: the municipal (market) bus stand, the high range bus stand near the Civil Station, and the adjacent KSRTC bus stand.
The municipal bus stand functions as the town’s principal private bus terminal, handling around 260 buses daily, according to officials. The complex also houses dozens of commercial establishments that depend on the steady flow of passengers. Signs of deterioration of the decades-old structure are there to see, with exposed steel rods visible in sections of the ceiling.
While the building continues to function normally and bus services remain uninterrupted, municipal officials said a stability assessment has been initiated. Traders, meanwhile, are uncertain of how the project will unfold. Benny Pulickal, vice-president of the Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi’s town unit and owner of a medical store functioning out of the bus stand complex, said shopkeepers had not yet received information about relocation.
“If the project goes ahead, we will have to be relocated. That could put many of us under financial strain,” he said, adding that medical store owners like him would face licensing issues if they were required to shift their establishments. “There is no final plan yet. Once the DPR is prepared, we will have a clearer picture of the project,” the muncipal engineer said, adding that a plan for relocating traders from the existing shopping complex would be prepared after the DPR is finalised.
