THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the Smart City Thiruvananthapuram Ltd (SCTL) resuming the pending preliminary works after months, the Rs 427-crore Smart Road project is finally back on track. However, the ongoing monsoon season is likely to play spoilsport, say experts.
According to SCTL authorities, though the Smart Roads were inaugurated in February, there has been little progress so far owing to the elections and the second wave of the pandemic. According to officials, the district collector stopped road cutting and digging activities owing to the election code of conduct, causing the delay. In order to expedite the project, SCTL has convened a meeting with the Kerala Road Fund Board (KRFB) — the implementation body for 37 km stretch under the project.
“Underground excavations were not allowed during the assembly and local body elections. A review meeting has been convened with the KRFB authorities this week. The preliminary works are already in progress on corporation roads,” said a senior official of SCTL — the SPV of Smart City Projects. The period of completion is 18 months.
“The smart roads project is one of the most challenging projects because of the nature of the work. The plan is to upgrade the roads coming under ABD by shifting all overhead cables and water lines to underground ducts. This would be convenient for future maintenance. We lost around five months and have to make up for the lost period,” said the official.
The plan is to upgrade 49 km of road falling under the Area Based Development (ABD) of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation. As part of the project, all overhead utilities would be laid underground. Dedicated cycle tracks are also one of the attractive features of Smart Roads. “We have started the preliminary works, including surveying and making construction drawings. We haven’t started digging up roads because of the ongoing monsoon. So we are hoping to start the work in August,” said a top official of KRFB.
Picking up pace
The plan is to upgrade the roads coming under ABD by shifting all overhead cables and water lines to underground ducts
This would be convenient for future maintenance
There will be dedicated cycle tracks
The project is delayed due to the elections and the second wave of the pandemic
SCTL — the implementation body for 37 km stretch under the project — has convened a meeting with the Kerala Road Fund Board to expedite the project