The much-awaited foot overbridge in front of Government Higher Secondary School for Girls, Cotton Hill, is nearing completion, much to the relief of over 4,000 children studying at the school.
Though the foundation stone for the project was laid in March, the foot overbridge failed to materialise as per plan for the school reopening.
Work had been delayed slightly on account of minor issues such as cabling. The overbridge is expected to be ready in another week, giving students a safe option to cross the road.
“Only some works, including beautification, remain. A vertical garden is being planned as part of the beautification,” city Corporation officials said.
PPP mode
The foot overbridge project is being executed under a public-private partnership (PPP) between the city Corporation and Sun Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. The company will bear the project cost and the maintenance too, in return for advertisement space.
No date had been set for the inauguration as yet, Corporation officials said. Mayor V.K. Prasanth had reviewed the progress of work earlier this week.
Crossing the road during morning and evening rush hours has been an ordeal for students over the years, despite the presence of traffic police personnel.
Another foot overbridge has been proposed at St. Mary’s Higher Secondary School, Pattom, again a school with thousands of children.
One foot overbridge has also been proposed at East Fort, but it needs clearance from the Archaeology Department.
