The plan to reconstruct the District Court bridge in Alappuzha has gained momentum.
A report based on the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) study being conducted by the Rajagiri Educational Alternatives and Community Health (outREACH) Service Society, a wing of the Rajagiri College of Social Sciences, Kalamassery, will be submitted to authorities soon.
Last week, as part of the SIA, a public hearing was organised. As per the assessment, around 200 people, a majority of them traders, will be affected by the project. Besides, eight classrooms, toilets, and a portion of the compound wall of the SDV school will have to be demolished. A total of 2.8 acres of land will have to be acquired for the project.
The existing court bridge across the Vada canal has a length of 33 m and a width of 7.5 m. Six roads merge at the two approaches to the bridge and heavy traffic congestion affects the smooth flow of traffic on the Alappuzha-Madurai State Highway.
The proposal is to build a new elevated bridge, a set of underpasses, ramp roads and flyovers on either side of the canal, which is expected to help ease traffic congestion in Alappuzha town.
No signals
As per the detailed project report prepared by the Public Work Department’s (PWD) bridges design unit, the flyover is designed as a roundabout with no signals. Vehicles from YMCA Junction will pass through the underpass to reach the KSRTC bus station, Punnamada, Changanassery Road, and Kollam and vehicles going to Mullakkal and Vaikom can use the flyover.
Vehicles from Thiruvananthapuram side can use both the flyover and underpass to reach Punnamada. Those coming from Mullakkal may use the flyover to reach Vaikom, YMCA Junction, and the KSRTC bus station.
On the Mullakkal side, a few box-type structures of size 5.8 m x 5.2 m under the ramp road have been proposed to rehabilitate the existing shops on the same side. Reconstruction of the Alappuzha boat jetty is also proposed.
The project will be implemented by the Kerala Road Fund Board at a cost of ₹98.90 crore. It will be funded by the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB).