Minister for Public Works G. Sudhakaran will lay the stone for the construction of a foot overbridge at East Fort junction on July 18.
City Corporation Mayor V.K. Prasanth will preside over the function which will be held at the Gandhi Park at 3 p.m. The foot overbridge has been a long time demand, as the area has witnessed deaths of pedestrians in road accidents in recent years.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, the Mayor said that the foot overbridge will be constructed in such a way as to match the heritage monuments including the fort wall in the area.
“The public is facing a lot of difficulties in crossing the road at East Fort. Accidents have happened here in recent times. This is why the Corporation took a decision to construct a foot overbridge here. Along with this, a pedestrian underpass too will be constructed in the area under the Smart City project. With these two becoming a reality, we can ensure the safety of pedestrians. We have already got clearance for the foot overbridge from all the agencies concerned, including the Heritage Department and the Road Fund Board,” said the Mayor.
This will be the third underpass that will be constructed by the city Corporation, under a public-private partnership arrangement. Sun Infrastructure will be constructing it as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities, with the Corporation allowing the company to use the space for advertisement.
The first such foot overbridge had come up in front of the Cotton Hill Girls’ Higher Secondary School. The work on the second one is ongoing, in front of the St.Mary’s Higher Secondary School in Kesavadasapuram.
The second one was supposed to be completed by June, in time for the school re-opening, but with delay in getting permission from the Public Works Department, it was put on hold.
