KOCHI: Though delayed for nearly a year, the much-awaited Edappally flyover will be commissioned by April this year.
Construction has been progressing at a fast pace and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, the executing agency, has agreed to complete works by April, works minister V. K. Ebrahim Kunju said.
Though the flyover will decongest the Aluva – Ernakulam Road, commuters using the NH 47 will not benefit much.
The vehicles coming from NH 17 and NH 47 have to wait for the signal to cross the busy junction.
“The works of the 400-metre long four-lane bridge are in the final stage at the St. George Church side while pile caps are being constructed at the Aluva side. Each side will have 7.5-metre carriageway. We have deputed more workers, and we will be able to finish the project by April. The delay was due to initial hurdles in land acquisition,” said a top official of DMRC.
The flyover at a total cost of Rs 140 crore, including land acquisition and preparatory works, was proposed to ease the traffic congestion at the narrow and ill-planned Edappally Junction where NH 47 and NH 17 meet.
The PWD has included the project in SPEED Kerala programme. However, residents raise serious doubts about its benefits.
If the bridge has been extended by another 100 metres, the issue could have been avoided. However, the agencies involved in the project, PWD, DMRC and
Kerala Road Fund Board, have been putting the blame on one another. The DMRC has prepared the design and estimate.
