GHMC sketches big plans to ease city traffic

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) which is drafting ambitious plans to unclog city roads for traffic with a series of multi-grade separators and skyways is in the process of finalising estimates for the project.

Under the Strategic Road Development Programme (SRDP), at the behest of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, the civic body has decided to focus on taking up a dozen works in key road stretches and junctions at what could cost around Rs.1,270 crore.

“The idea behind the programme is to come up facilities that ensure that vehicles move without having to halt or get caught in traffic jams. Our focus is on 11 to 12 roads and junctions in key locations that face major traffic problems,” said GHMC Commissioner & Special Officer Somesh Kumar.

The planning for select points has already been completed and basic designs taken care of by the civic body but kept on hold as of now, in view of the code in force for the election of Hyderabad-Mahabubnagar-Ranga Reddy Graduates’ Constituency. “Shortly, we will make public these details and designs and arrange for tenders,” he said.

As part of the SRDP, the selected road stretches would be widened where required and multi-level grade separators set up to fly over junctions in different directions. “Unlike a flyover which is uni-directional and traffic flows in two directions, the multi-level ones facilitate simultaneous traffic flow in several different directions,” Mr. Somesh Kumar said.

Some of the roads and junctions to be taken up for the SRDP include the vicinities of KBR Park, Durgam Cheruvu bridge, Bahadurpura flyover, LB Nagar junction and BHEL. Of these, the designs worked out for Jubilee Hills check-post has three levels of skyways facilitating five different crossings. As per initial estimates prepared, the GHMC looks at earmarking Rs.90 crore for development of Kukatpally-Biodiversity junction, Rs.80 crore for Uppal-Sangeet junction, Rs.95 crore Mallapur-Habsiguda and Rs.140 crore for Hayatnagar-Nalgonda crossroads under the SRDP.

To take up dozen works on key stretches and junctions with Rs.1,270 crore