THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The much-awaited development of the Althara-Attakulangara stretch via Vazhuthacaud, Thycaud and Killipalam in the capital city as part of the Smart road project under the Smart City Thiruvananthapuram Limited scheme (SCTL) is likely to kick off in four months.
The seven-kilometre road will get a major facelift with white topping using concrete and streetlights on the median. The cables will be laid underground. The traffic will be restricted to one side of the stretch, while work goes on the other side. The executing agency of this project is Kerala Road Fund Board (KRFB) as the stretch is under PWD.
“We will start the construction within four months after completing the smaller roads. However, the planning of this project has started and we are already working on the re-routing aspects. We will also take over the additional acquired land near Thycaud and will clear out any encroachments. The development of this stretch will be done in a single phase,” said G Raju, Project Engineer, KRFB.
The expected deadline is in the first quarter of 2023. An officer of SCTL, which is the funding agency, said around Rs 60 crore will be set aside for the development of the stretch. “The stretch will be made of concrete which has higher durability. The road is part of the 38km stretch which will be developed under the Smart road project,” the officer said.
The widening and beautification of this 2.5-km stretch from Althara to Thycaud Mother and Children Hospital have been a long-standing demand of people. The government had tasked the Trivandrum Development Authority (TRIDA) with acquiring the land required for widening the road, installing streetlights and constructing a median. The plan was to widen the Sri Moolam Club-Xanadu junction and Amman Kovil junction-Thycaud hospital stretch. The road was to be constructed as per the norms of the Indian Roads Congress. However, it did not take off due to the legal hurdles and later this stretch became part of the proposed Smart road project.
R K Madani Group is developing roads under the KRFB and PWD in the city. Earlier, the construction of smart roads was expected to be completed by August 2022. However, the pandemic hit the work and hence the contractor got relaxation for six more months to complete it. The smart road project aims to upgrade 38km of the road falling under the Area Based Development (ABD) scheme of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation.