THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The authorities on Saturday launched a major two-day work on the Althara-Thycaud stretch to make the road motorable by the end of this month.
As part of the redevelopment work, the road from Bakery Jn to Vazhuthacaud Jn will be closed to traffic on Saturday and Sunday. The nearly 3km-long stretch has been in a dilapidated condition for the past several months owing to the cut-open roads. Heavy traffic blocks have been a regular scene on the stretch ever since Smart City Thiruvananthapuram Ltd (SCTL) launched the redevelopment works.
The implementation of the ambitious smart road project, launched two years back to upgrade the stretch with new-age features, has missed multiple deadlines owing to a range of issues, including bursting of sewage lines, termination of contract work, delay in tendering and getting the contractors for undertaking the work.
According to a senior official with the Kerala Road Fund Board (KRFB), the utility lines on the stretch are being relayed. “We hope the age-old utility lines of the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) don’t burst during the work. We expect to complete a major part of the work by Sunday evening and hope the stretch can be made motorable by March 31,” said the official.
Though the actual deadline set for the completion of the smart roads is May 31, the KRFB and SCTL are planning to expedite various works and complete them ahead of time. “We hope to start the tarring work soon and the rest of the components, including marking cycle tracks, erecting street lights, marking pedestrian ways, and installing handrails will be done after the road is made motorable,” said the official.
The Althara-Thycaud stretch is the only smart road in the capital to have a dedicated cycle track.
The major components of the smart road development include uniform carriageway width along the length of the road with pedestrian facilities to improve walkability and road safety, underground utility ducting for laying communication cables and utility lines of KWA and KSEB, and upgradation of rainwater drainage system. The bursting of sewage lines and lack of timely intervention from the KWA is cited as one of the reasons for the inordinate delay faced by the project.
