Not many takers for Asilmetta flyover

Municipal corporation has built it at a cost of Rs. 80 crore. As per GVMC Commissioner M.V. Satyanarayana, the initial survey pointed out that the total traffic flow at Aseelmetta during the recorded 14 hours was about 15,000 and it also indicated that about 8,000 would use the flyover if built.

Is the 1.9-km flyover from Asilmetta to railway station, which is considered the prestigious project of the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation and built at a cost of about Rs. 80 crore, serving the purpose or has the money spent on it gone down the drain?

Well, in the present scenario it looks to be serving only a few, when the actual estimate, as per a survey by the GVMC, stated that about 8,000 vehicles would ply over it on a daily basis within a time span of 14 hours.

As per GVMC Commissioner M.V. Satyanarayana, the initial survey pointed out that the total traffic flow at Aseelmetta during the recorded 14 hours was about 15,000 and it also indicated that about 8,000 would use the flyover if built.

But in reality the figure is in hundreds and the traffic jam persists at Asilmetta. The flyover was conceived as JNNURM project in 2002 and the construction started in 2008-09 and was completed in 2013.

When asked why there are only a few takers, Professor Bala Prasad from the department of Civil Engineering (environment and transport), Andhra University, pointed out that the survey was probably wrongly conducted. “The original idea was to ease the traffic flow at Asilmetta, and the survey was focussed on the traffic movement at the chokepoint. In reality, the survey should have concentrated on the ‘origin and destination’ point. Today, the flyover is being used only by the people from AU side whose destination is the railway station,” he said.

Main factor

Another important factor he pointed out was that the flyover bypasses three major junctions or points, such as APSRTC terminus, Dwarakanagar junction and Dondaparthi junction.

“The area is a commercial hub and the major flow of traffic both inflow and outflow is from APSRTC terminus. The flyover bypasses all the three junctions. There are no arteries to connect people,” said Prof. Prasad.

A former professor of Department of Architecture Shabnam Patel pointed out the flyover would have been effective if arteries (slopes) at important junctions were built. To, which the GVMC’s Chief City Planner D. Venkatratnam noted that acquiring land at critical points was the problem along with fund crunch.

According to the Chief City Planner, the takers may be a few at the moment, but it would pick up in a few years.