The travails of motorists using the road under the flyover at Bikarnakatte may get over by August-end. The fly over under construction at Bikarnakatte — also called Maroli flyover — is expected to be opened for traffic by then, according to Shri Ram Mishra, Project Director, the National Highways Authority of India (NHA).
Mr. Mishra also announced that a separate flyover is expected to come up at Nanthoor circle. A vociferous demand for this flyover was made at the maiden review meeting convened recently by Dakshina Kannada in-charge Minister B. Ramanath Rai.
The Maroli flyover is part of the NHAI’s Port Connectivity Project (widening the B.C. Road-Surathkal stretch).
Mr. Mishra told J. R. Lobo, Mangalore South MLA, during an inspection of highway works in the city on Wednesday that the NHAI was waiting for rains to ease for tarring the remaining 100mt stretch of the Maroli flyover. Mr. Lobo told presspersons on the occasion that the 4m-wide service road (from Nanthoor to Moodbidri) of the Maroli flyover should be widened to nine metres to deal with the present traffic density on the stretch.
He said would take steps for acquiring the additional land. “I will write to the authorities concerned for acquiring the land,” he said.
Mr. Mishra said that a new four-lane flyover is expected to be built at Nanthoor circle on the NH 66 to facilitate smooth movement of traffic on the highway as demanded by people. The NHAI has not yet approved the proposal. Mr. Mishra said that a residential apartment — High Point — near the Circle (on Bikarnakatte Road) will not be demolished for building the flyover.
The Project Director said that a flyover would be built at Mahaveera Circle (popularly called Pumpwell Circle) on the NH 66 under the ongoing Phase III of the National Highways Development Project (Kundapura to Surathkal and Nanthoor to Talapady).
The ‘kalasha’ at the circle would have to be shifted to facilitate construction of the flyover. The 5.5 m tall flyover would have three spans, he said.
When Mr. Lobo asked about the feasibility of building an underpass at KPT Junction (near Karnataka Polytechnic) connecting the Airport road with Circuit House road Mr. Mishra suggested that instead of an underpass a flyover could be built.
Mr. Lobo said he would take up the matter with Oscar Fernandes, Union Minister for Surface Transport and Highways.
At Kottara flyover Mr. Mishra said the service roads could be widened from 4mt to 5.5 m if people co-operated. To a question he said the new bridge across the Netravati would be completed by the end of September.
