Aug. 1: Construction work of a parallel bridge at Lakdikapul to ease traffic congestion will start shortly as the GHMC’s Standing Committee approved the project a week back.

The civic body will pay over Rs 9 crore to the South Central Railway for taking up works on constructing a new road over-bridge abutting the existing bridge. This will pave way for extending the carriageway to four more lanes.

The plan is to merge the new and existing bridges as the existing Lakdikapul Bridge has a carriageway width of less than 30 feet.

A joint study conducted by the GHMC and the traffic police revealed that vehicle speed on this stretch has come down to 5 km per hour during peak hours.

According to the Traffic Police, over 3.5 lakh vehicles pass through the road every day. “The reason for traffic jams on this stretch is that there is only a one-lane carriageway on the Lakdikapul old bridge compared to three lanes and more at the Ravindra Bharathi side and the Ranga Reddy district collectorate side, from where a large number of vehicles hit the bridge to go towards Masab Tank and Khairatabad,” the Additional Commissioner of Police (traffic) Mr C.V. Anand said.

The GHMC officials said that nearly two dozen private properties were being acquired and around 1,500 square yards of land (on which the Intelligence Department was), has been taken over for the Lakdikapul new parallel bridge project.

The GHMC Additional Commissioner (Planning and Projects) said that though the Lakdikapul project, including construction of the bridge, acquisition of properties and payment of compensation to affected property owners, will cost over Rs 20 crore to GHMC, the civic body is not only going ahead but also speeding up works on the project as a parallel bridge is essential for smooth traffic movement on this main corridor.

Remarking on the pending proposals for construction of road over-bridges at Uppuguda and Kandikal Gate railway gates respectively in the Old City, he said that both the projects were crucial for easing traffic congestion in the Old City. “We will take up works shortly,” said the GHMC Additional Commissioner.