On road to development

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Survey for the development of a road connecting the hilly region of Vellarada with the city has begun. Road Infrastructure Company Kerala (RICK), a government agency, is surveying the Vellarada-Kattakkada-Karamana stretch to prepare a master plan for its development.When developed, the road will become a bypass for the NH-66 and the proposed coastal and hill highways.  According to preliminary estimates, development of the stretch as a two-lane road with modern facilities will cost Rs 127 crore. Of this, Rs 21 crore will be spent for land acquisition alone. Parassala MLA C K Hareendran said the road development will considerably reduce the travel hassles of the people of Vellarada. 

“At present, traffic congestion is a common phenomenon at many spots on the stretch due to lack of width and unscientific stoppages for public transport services. The development plan will address all these issues,” he said. The survey which began from Vellarada is being conducted by a team of officials of RICK led by its managing director Pennamma M. After development, the road will have a total width of 13.5 m. Of this, 10.5 m will be the bitumen surface. The road will have sideways of 1.5 m width each. There will be covered drainage lines upon which footpaths will be set up.

The start point of the road is Karamana junction on the NH-66 and the end point is Vellarada Junction on the Neyyar Dam- Parassala stretch. The end point is just half a km from Chenkal, a point on the proposed hill highway. Earlier, a DPR for the road development was prepared in 2012. Now a revised project report will be prepared after the survey. The survey team which began work on October 5 also demarcates the land to be acquired.

According to Hareendran, the road will become an alternate route for vehicles from Tamil Nadu to the Vizhinjam port which is under construction.   Modern waiting sheds will also be built at major junctions. The development work as part of the State Road Improvement Project will be executed by RICK.

Total length- 

35.500 km
Start point- Karamana Jn on NH-66
End point- 
Vellarada Jn (Neyyar Dam- Parassala road)
Taluks- Thiruvananthapuram, Kattakkada, Neyyattinkara
Constituencies- 
Nemom, Vattiyoorkavu, 
Kattakkada, Parassala
Major junctions- Karamana, Thirumala, Malayinkeezhu, Kattakkada, 
Ottasekharamangalam, Vellarada
Minor junctions- 32
Major bridge- 1, at Kundamankadavu
Minor bridges- 
5 (two to be rebuilt)
Culverts- 39