Decks have been cleared for the completion of the second Railway Over Bridge (ROB) at Chakka as part of the ongoing four-laning of the 26.7-km Kazhakuttam-Mukkola corridor of the National Highway 66 bypass stretching up to Karode.
After waiting for months, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has successfully placed the five 44-m-long steel composite girder of the proposed ROB over the busy Kollam-Thiruvananthapuram railway corridor.
The girders, pre-fabricated in Hyderabad, were shifted to the site and placed above the railway line using 200 tonne and 250 tonne cranes moved from Bengalaru and after enforcing line block of the railway corridor for four hours in the wee hours of August 17 and 18, restricting traffic along the bypass and switching off the power in the locality for the safe transportation.
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“The fabrication works is in full swing and we plan to do the concreting in 10 to 12 days,” a top NHAI official said. The switch over to the steel composite girder from pre-stressed concrete was as per the new specifications of the railways for the ROB.
With the placing of girders above the railway line, the authorities have decided to further expedite the remaining four-laning work in the 3.5-km Chakka-Enchakkal-Muttathara stretch, including the 1.6-km four-lane flyover in front of the international airport
The work on the 40-odd pillars of the ₹142-crore flyover from the old and upcoming overbridge at Chakka up to Kingsway Hotel is progressing.
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