The Hindu      13.05.2010

Plea to commence work on widening Marudhamalai Road

Staff Reporter

It is one of the busiest roads in the city during peak hours

File Photo: M. Periasamy

BOTTLENECK: Traffic flow is impeded by this narrow stretch on Marudhamalai Road at Pappanaickenpudur in the city. –

Coimbatore: The Coimbatore Consumer Cause (CCC) has appealed to the Secretary to Government for Highways Department to take up the work for widening the Marudhamalai Road and complete the same expeditiously.

In a memorandum, K. Kathirmathiyon, Secretary of CCC had pointed out that Marudhamalai Road is one of the busiest roads in Coimbatore and the traffic on this road is very heavy due to large number of people visiting Marudhamalai Temple, Bharathiar University, Government Law College and Tamil Nadu Agricultural University.

In addition, Marudhamalai Road links a large number of residential colonies on either side thereby increasing the traffic flow during peak hours.

The traffic problems and necessity for widening of Marudhamalai Road were many times discussed at the District Road Safety Committee meetings also.

The necessity for widening the road was felt and recorded at the meeting for the past two years.

The Committee also felt that the road should be widened into a four-lane stretch and requested the Highways Department to send a suitable proposal to the Government.

During the last year the Corporation proposed to undertake Underground Drainage work on Marudhamalai road which would require digging up of roads. Hence it was decided to wait for completion of the underground drainage work by the Municipal Corporation.

Unfortunately, the work was yet to commence till date and it was likely to take a few more months for the same.

Even when the work was started, it might take several months to complete the work.

When the existing road was insufficient for the present traffic density, it was felt that widening of the road was absolute necessity.

Even the present road might not be available for road users when the UGD work was undertaken.

But CCC organisation agreed that Government money should not be wasted when the new roads were to be damaged for UGD work probably after few months.

The UGD work by the Corporation is to be undertaken up to the Corporation limit only on the road i.e. upto Karuppurayan Koil (Highways Bridge).

Hence the four-lane widening work from Karuppurayan Koil to Marudhamalai which is about 6 km could be undertaken in the first phase.

The remaining road widening work on about 4 km (from Lawley Road Junction to Karuppurayan Koil) could be taken after completion of the UGD work by the Corporation.

Hence CCC requested the Government to kindly consider the suggestion for four-lane widening work of Marudhamalai Road in two phases.