The civic work has started on the much-awaited bypass road to link the western arm of the flyover on 100-feet Road to the service road near the railway over-bridge at Arumparthapuram.
The project is expected to be completed by August 2024, according to an official of the Public Works Department (PWD).
The need for a bypass road was felt for long, with the arterial Villupuram Road that runs through the city gets heavily congested on the stretch from Moolakulam to Indira Gandhi Square, especially at peak hours.
The PWD proposed the bypass road project in 2010 to keep vehicles coming from Cuddalore and Villupuram from the city. It had proposed a bypass road with a width of 100 feet. However, it reduced the width to 75 feet subsequently .
The project cost is ₹26 crore with financial assistance from the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO).
According to an official, the project was held up mainly by problems in acquiring land at four revenue villages: Olandai, Reddiyarpalayam, Kurumbapet and Odiampet.
“The government had acquired the right of way for about 22 metres on the stretch. A mud road was laid from the western arm of the flyover on the 100-feet Road to a distance of 2.25 km. But differences in fixing prices for two revenue villages meant a few residents moved court. This put the project in trouble. The issue was resolved after the government set ₹39 crore as the compensation to the landowners,” the official added.
L. Maguesh, a resident of Arumparthapuram, regularly takes the Villupuram Road to commute to his office at Thavalakuppam.
“The road is mostly congested at peak hours, and I was used to getting stuck in traffic for more than an hour. The bypass road will reduce the number of vehicles moving from Madagadipet and other suburbs of the city through the Villupuram Road. This will ease traffic congestion in the city. I am eagerly waiting for the completion of the project,” he said.
The work began recently with the PWD clearing vegetation on the 4.4-km stretch. The undulating terrain is being levelled and road formation has commenced. The bypass road will be 22 metres wide and have four culverts till Arumparthapuram. The project will be completed before the deadline, an official said.
On its completion, there would not be any need for people travelling to Indira Gandhi Square from Madagadipet to enter Moolakulam or Reddiyarpalayam. They could touch Natesan Nagar by taking the bypass road at the intersection of the flyover on the 100-feet Road. This would also reduce the traffic from Indira Gandhi Square to Moolakulam.
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