The work on the Bailey bridge across the Kallada river at Enathu is nearing completion.
A 50-member team from the Army Engineering Group from Chennai, led by Neeraj Mathur and Major Anosh Koshy, is expected to complete the erection of the steel bridge by Tuesday midnight.
The erection of steel girders and panels and laying of platform on the steel structure have been completed.
The bridge will have pedestrian pathways on both sides.
Abutment strengthening
The Kerala State Transport Project will further strengthen the abutments on both banks of the river using granite blocks.
The 50-member team of the Indian Army attached to the 14-Madras Engineering Group brought the steel structure from Secunderabad to Enathu on March 22. The work began on Monday morning and it took hardly 48 hours for the team to erect the steel bridge.
Signal lamps
Signal lamps have been installed on both sides of the approach roads leading to the bridge as it will provide only single line traffic at a time.
Only light motor vehicles and ambulances would be permitted on the bridge. Heavy vehicles will continue to take the diversion route from Enathu Junction on the northern side of the river and from Puthoormukku on the southern side till the repair work on the damaged piers of the 18-year-old concrete bridge is completed.
Public Works Minister G. Sudhakaran has said that the Bailey bridge as well as the bridge approaches will be ready for commissioning by April 10.
Trial drive successful
The Army successfully carried out the trial drive of a military jeep on the bridge by 7 p.m on Tuesday.
The government decision to construct the Bailey bridge was to address the immediate travel needs of the people in the wake of the closure of the damaged concrete bridge across the Kallada river in January.
Work to strengthen the damaged piers of the concrete bridge is progressing.
