Two lanes of the proposed four-lane highway linking Mulavukad Island with Kalamassery would be thrown open to traffic, hopefully by the year end.
Though a good share of the two-lane road and bridges on the 17.2-km-long stretch is over, a 200-metre slushy stretch near Cheranallore prevents vehicles from moving ahead in both directions. The stretch from Mulavukad up to Cheranallore is motorable, but for construction debris strewn on the road and bridge surface, and the lack of street lighting.
The revised deadline to complete the two-lane road expired in August. The road christened as NH 47-C has been built mainly for use by container lorries to and from the Vallarpadam container transshipment terminal. They would be able to bypass the city and reach Premier Junction in Kalamassery, saving on the distance covered and the time spent.
The National Highways Authority of India is yet to decide on permitting private vehicles to use the stretch. This would have reduced congestion on the congested Banerjee Road and the Kaloor-Kalamassery road. The NHAI's Kochi Project Director C. T. Abraham said that surfacing the slushy portion near Cheranallore would take time since the mud cannot compact during the rains.
The four-lane highway is estimated to have cost Rs. 571 crore, while the land acquisition cost is Rs. 301 crore. Bridges constitute around three kms of the 17.20 km road.
“A few more works are pending on the two-lane stretch, including the construction of crash barriers on the road kerb and the central medians. Once four-laning is over, the footpaths of the road that passes through picturesque locales and the backwaters could even be used as a walkway. The pending works can be sped up once the rains take a break,” Mr. Abraham said.
The NH 47-C would also laterally link NH 17 and NH 47, bringing communities closer.
The new highway has resulted in the price of land on either side skyrocketing and the city developing to the north-west. On the flip side, it has reduced the availability of fish in the backwaters, affecting the livelihood of many families.
The rail connectivity from Vallarpadam to Edapally and the construction of Edapally railway station had been completed by the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited in record time.
