The Chief Minister’s announcement of sanction of funds for a two-lane road overbridge on Sathyamangalam Road near Textool in Coimbatore has come as a relief to the road users.
An official of the Highways Department told The Hindu on Monday that soil tests were on. The Department would now take up design of the two-lane bridge, get the design approved and then call for bids. This would take three more months. The cost was Rs. 20 crore. Of this, the Railways would do their share of the work for about Rs. 4.5 crore. The total length of the bridge would be 200 metres.
K. Kathirmathiyon, secretary of the Coimbatore Consumer Cause, welcomed the Chief Minister’s announcement and said that the bridge was a necessity. Sathyamangalam Road had heavy flow of traffic and the two-lane bridge was inadequate for the growing traffic. It was a National Highway Road and a four-lane bridge was proposed. When the two-lane bridge work was completed, the Central Government decided to take up the projects on public-private partnership mode. Hence, works for another two-lane bridge could not be implemented. Several representations were made for completion of the project.
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The State Government’s sanction of funds now would enable completion of the rest of the bridge and it would provide solution to a long-term infrastructure problem in the city. While designing the two-lane bridge, an underpass should also be included to facilitate vehicle movement to the industrial and residential areas near the bridge on either side.