VIJAYAWADA: To reduce traffic congestion and road accidents, Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) has drafted an action plan to widen 10 roads from the existing 40, 60 and 80 feet roads to 100 feet. Works are likely to commence shortly and are expected to be completed by October.
According to town planning department officials, the civic body has already completed a ground-level survey during mid-June. Steps are being taken to provide compensation of 1:4 ratio for the owners of buildings whose structures will be demolished for materialising the works.
Speaking to TNIE, VMC town planner A Lakshmana Rao said the VMC has identified as many as 542 properties to be damaged during the widening of 10 roads in the city. The roads that will be widened from 40 ft to 80 ft include Veterinary Hospital Road, Gupta Kalyana Mandapam Road, Kothuru-Tadepalli (KT) Road, Labbipeta Water Tank Road, Tikkle Road, Jammi Chettu Road, Visalandhra Road (Part-1 and 2), Prasadampadu- Sanath Nagar Road and Carmel Nagar Road.
However, officials are yet to identify the number of properties to be affected on Prasadampadu-Sanath Nagar Road stretch as its limits are shared by the VMC and the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA), he said.
“Recently orders were issued by the Municipal Administration & Urban Development (MA&UD). At present, the field level officers are gathering the details of the property owners on the proposed road stretches and works will be commenced shortly,” Rao said.
The officials are readying Transfer Development Rights (TDR) Bonds. Already TDR Bonds have been distributed to the building owners for widening Mahatma Gandhi Road between NTR Circle and Auto Nagar to 100 ft from 80 ft. In another 2.5-km stretch between Pantakaluva Road and AYUSH Hospitals — the issue of which is pending with the judiciary — discussions will be conducted with the property owners at the earliest, he said.To speed up the road widening works, the civic body and the APCRDA will jointly conduct a survey on the stretch to identify the properties to be affected and will discuss the matter with the property owners, Rao elaborated.