Road widening slow, traffic snarls increase in Hubballi

Hubballi: The long-awaited project widening of the two-lane road from Gadag road to Anchatgeri village via the Indi Pump in Hubballi is still unfinished.
The widening is expected to reduce traffic problems in the city, but is progressing at a snail's pace.
The public works department has taken up the work to upgrade roads at a cost of Rs 109 crore.
The work was started in 2018 but failed to finish on deadline last year.
PWD executive engineer Rajendra Hurakadalli said that due to heavy rain and Covid-19, work did go slow. About 80 % of the work is complete. The project is lagging behind due to many reasons, including shifting of utility lines, excessive rain last year and Covid-19. By May, the work will be complete, he added.
The road construction is also badly affecting traffic movement from Indi Pump to Kempkeri Road.
Kuber Pawar, a resident of Anand Nagar in Hubballi, said that to reduce the traffic in the city and to make the roads from two-lane to four-lane, the construction of the CC road was sanctioned.
The work was happening fast from the beginning till 2020 and after that it slowed down. The residents of Navyoudha Nagar, Anand Nagar, Santosh Nagar, Vishal Nagar, Subash Nagar, Siddharoodha Mutt are facing traffic problems. The one road there has been dug up. The authorities should finish the work at earliest, Pawar said.
Motorist Mahantesh K said elected representatives do bhoomi poojas and don’t follow up on the work. Every day many vehicles enter through the bypass and this causes traffic jams.