BHUBANESWAR: The congested and disorganised exit outside platform four of Bhubaneswar railway station is set to get a facelift under a major expansion plan.
According to the proposed plan for Bhubaneswar railway station, four more platforms will be added to the existing four.
The entire stretch of road outside platform four, connecting the station with Cuttack-Puri NH belongs to the BMC. The Corporation has approved transfer of the road stretch, about 250 metres, to the Works Department to repair and restore it. Another stretch of road, about a kilometre long, running parallel to the platform will also be developed for smooth flow of traffic and movement of passengers. All the encroachments on these stretches will be removed.
PWD Chief Engineer BC Pradhan said they were in the process of developing a circulation plan which will not only easen the traffic flow but also carve out adequate space for proper parking.
In addition to that, encroachments on the NH near Hotel Pushpak at Kalpana Square, Laxmisagar and Budheswari Colony are also expected to be removed to widen the road leading up to the station.
Currently, the roads leading to both ends of the station are in urgent need of repair and renovation. The exit outside platform four does not have a dedicated parking space nor is the road wide enough to accommodate two four-wheelers simultaneously. The haphazard parking by the auto-rickshaws makes the place even more chaotic.
The Works Department has also proposed to construct a flyover outside platform one to ease the traffic flow around the rotary near Master Canteen.
Sources said as per the expansion plans, existing platform one will be converted into another railway track and the stretch of area, comprising reservation counter, will be developed as the new platform one. The civic authorities had recently conducted a major eviction drive outside platform one to remove makeshift eateries and few permanent structures.
The eviction drive had to be left midway due to legal hassles over Durga Mandap located right outside the station.
BEAUTIFICATION DRIVE
Four more platforms will be added to the existing four
The road outside platform four, connecting the station with Cuttack-Puri NH,will be developed
All encroachments on the stretch to be removed
A flyover outside platform one proposed to ease traffic flow around the rotary near Master Canteen