Thanks to the controversy over the Anna Arch, two flyovers will come up instead of one at the junction of Anna Nagar 3 Avenue and Poonamallee High Road.
The Highways Department has dropped its proposal to construct a vehicular subway near the flyover as according to the original design, it would have come up at the location where the arch stands. The State Government had decided to retain the landmark Anna arch and instead make a slight deviation in the design of the Rs. 117 crore-flyover.
“This will be a second-level flyover with a vehicular clearance of 12.5 metres. Traffic proceeding from Anna Nagar 3 Avenue to Koyambedu will take the new flyover, which will be to the western side of the arch. The original proposal was dropped due to various reasons including objections from residents in the area, the issue of seepage from the nearby Cooum river.
The soil condition in the area is also not conducive for a subway. Also, when compared to a subway, maintenance of a flyover is easier,” said a source in the department.
The cost for the change in design of the flyover are being worked out presently. A standing committee has approved the modified design for the flyover and it will be placed before the high-level committee that will meet sometime in December.
As regards the requirement of additional land for the construction of the flyover, the sources said that 150 sq mt of open land belonging to the Government Siddha Hospital would be utilised. “Already 135 sq. mts of open space from the institution is being taken. No new additional buildings would be pulled down,” he explained.
Meanwhile, work on the restoration of the Anna Arch is proceeding well and sthapthi work is nearing completion on one side.
The entire work of fixing the bird and floral designs made of cement is likely to get over in a week.
Painting work will be taken up after that.
