The Hindu 13.12.2013
Goshree-Mamangalam road project could be revived
Pachalam overbridge holds the key to revitalising Kochi Corporation’s Goshree-Mamangalam Road project.
Once
ready, the road would provide an alternative to the congested High
Court-Edappally road. The proposal for the four-lane road was dropped
considering the phenomenal increase in the cost of land acquisition.
With the State government and the corporation being jolted from sleep
following massive demand from the public and political parties for a
bridge at Pachalam, the road project through densely populated areas too
is expected to materialise in the coming years.
New bridge
Key
decision makers seem to have reached a consensus on building a two-lane
bridge having 1:20 gradient at Pachalam. “All that a two-lane
carriageway needs is 7.5 metres of space. Footpaths and ducts on either
side will require another three metres of space. Which means, a bridge
that will unwind snarls at Pachalam and adjacent roads can be built at
minimal width without displacing too many people,” said K.J. Sohan, the
chairman of the Kochi Corporation’s Town Planning standing committee.
Pachalam
could do with a two-lane bridge for the next 20 or 30 years. Cost of
land acquisition could further be brought down if the bridge was built
at 1:20 gradient – an elevation of a metre for every 20-metre distance,
he said.
The gradient as per JNNURM norms is 1:30.
Though this ensures a less steep bridge, its length and land to be
acquired will increase. Mr Sohan spoke of how vehicles are using North
overbridge which is being rebuilt at a 1:20 gradient. The bridge had a
1:14 gradient before it was pulled down.