Only single-lane flyover on Kingsway now

Nagpur: MahaMetro has changed the design of the Jaistambh Square traffic improvement project on the advice of traffic consultant Enia. The two-lane flyover on Kingsway has been replaced with a single lane flyover, on which traffic will flow from Ramjhula to Kasturchand Park. There will be no need to demolish the divisional railway manager (DRM) office, a bank and a showroom. However, on the flip side, traffic around Kasturchand Park (KP) will be one-way only.
A source in MahaMetro said that the consultant had undertaken a detailed traffic study of the area and found that the earlier design was not solving traffic congestion on the roads around KP. “Enia therefore suggested a new design,” he added.
The single-lane flyover will begin from the point where Ramjhula ends, cross Jaistambh Square, and take a left turn at Shrimohini Complex Square, to end about 100 metres from there on the road to RBI Square. As the length of the flyover has increased there will be no cost saving due to dropping of one lane. Kingsway will remain as it is and will remain two-way up to Shrimohini Complex Square.
The flow of traffic around KP will be one-way. If you want to travel from Central Avenue to Sadar, you will have to take the single lane flyover, then come down on the road linking Shrimohini Complex Square to RBI Square, take a right turn at RBI Square and then move towards LIC Square. Similarly, a person going from RBI Square to Ramjhula will have to travel via LIC Square.
“People travelling from railway station to Central Avenue will have to take a ramp under the single-lane flyover. There will be no traffic restrictions at Jaistambh Square and movement in all directions will be permitted,” said the source.
Activist Tejinder Singh Renu, who has been pursuing the Jaistambh traffic improvement scheme since months, said people would not mind travelling an extra 100 to 200 metres, if it saved them traffic congestion. “I can’t comment on the new design in detail as I have not studied it but the general principle is that 15 minutes of extra driving is better than 10 minutes of traffic jam. Many people living in Gandhibagh take the Outer Ring Road (ORR) to travel to Jamtha instead of Wardha Road,” he added.
There is no change in the rest of the project. The Station Road flyover will be demolished to make way for a six-lane road. Shopkeepers under the flyover will be rehabilitated in a commercial complex near the railway station. Re-engineering of Manas Square will be done, including construction of underpasses under the railway line.
Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari has sanctioned Rs232 crore from Central Roads Fund (CRF) for the project. While Public Works Department (PWD) is the nodal agency, MahaMetro has been appointed as the executing agency.
OLD DESIGN
* Two-lane flyover for to and fro movement on Kingsway
* Flyover to begin at Ramjhula and end before Shrimohini Complex Square
* No restriction on movement around Kasturchand Park
* Land belonging to railways, bank and private persons to be acquired
* Ramp below flyover for going to Central Avenue from railway station
NEW DESIGN
* Single-lane flyover to travel from Ramjhula to RBI Square
* Flyover to begin at Ramjhula and go beyond Shrimohini Complex Square
* Traffic around Kasturchand Park to be one-way
* No need to acquire any land
* Ramp below flyover for travelling from railway station to Central Avenue