The safety corridor project that aims to develop the Pilathara-Pappinissery road under the Kerala State Transport Project (KSTP) into an accident-free highway will be completed by October 1.
The ₹1.84-crore project, being implemented by the Kerala Road Safety Authority, was prepared on the basis of a comprehensive study conducted by the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (NATPAC). It was announced at the District Road Safety Council (DRSC) meeting that the project would be completed by October 1.
Officials said NATPAC had prepared the project after conducting a detailed study of accidents on the road over the past one year. Besides safety measures to avert accidents, the project proposed extensive road safety awareness campaigns and stringent action against traffic rule violators, they added.
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Under the project, pan-tilt-zoom surveillance cameras will be installed at 26 locations and bullet cameras at four locations along the 21-km stretch. In addition, ANPR (automated number plate recognition) cameras that can capture number plates and speed of vehicles will be installed at Pilathara Junction, Pazhayangadi bridge, Kannapuram police station, Pappinissery Junction, Punnachery, Hanumanambalam Junction, Pazhayangadi police station, Yogasala Road, and Puthiyakavu.
A central monitoring system to study video footage will be set up at the Kannapuram police station, officials said.
The DRSC also decided to ban heavy vehicles on the road from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
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Meanwhile, District Collector T.V. Subhash has ordered the eviction of encroachments on either side of the road to ensure safety. Roadside vendors, including eateries, should be evicted, and the help of the district administration and the police could be sought by officials, if required, to evict encroachers, the Collector said.