COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) plans to relocate the foot over bridge on the Palakkad main road close to the Kuniyamuthur Government Higher Secondary school which is situated close by. The civic body will invite bids for the work soon.
The civic body built the footover bridge near the Rice Mill Road junction in 2019 at a cost of Rs 1.25 crore. But it did not serve its purpose as pedestrians preferred to cross the road near the traffic signal which is a few metres away.
One of the reasons for pedestrians to shun it is it does not have an escalator or lift and senior citizens found the steps steep to climb. “Many people, especially elderly persons couldn’t climb the 50-odd steps to reach the top of the bridge and again climb 50-steps down. Also, the structure is not differently-abled friendly,” said Naveen, a resident of Muthusamy Street in Kuniyamuthur. In view of this, councillors of wards 87 & 88 along with Deputy Mayor R Vetriselvan met the CCMC Commissioner and requested him to relocate the bridge to about 500 metres near the Kuniyamuthur Government higher secondary school, as it will benefit hundreds of children.
“The bridge will be dismantled and relocated near the school. A DPR has been prepared and works will be carried out at a cost of Rs 35.60 lakh,” said a CCMC official, adding, “With this, people who utilise the pedestrian pathway in the Kurichi water body under the Smart City Projects and the students of the Kuniyamuthur high school will be able to cross the road at ease without waiting.”
Speaking to TNIE, CCMC Deputy Commissioner Dr M Sharmila said, “The council has given its approval to relocate the structure. The tender will be floated soon.”