No place to walk on SA Road

But even after 15 years, though the work on a significant part of the road has been completed, there is no end in sight to the hardships of pedestrians and commuters. The original road has been surfaced to a height of six inches. As a result the entire road is raised to a steep height of nine inches, leaving three metres on both sides filled with potholes. The shoulder of the road is easily vulnerable to heavy waterlogging, too. “The entry to nearly 20 pocket roads from SA Road has been blocked creating problems for two-wheeler and four-wheeler riders,” said Cochin Citizens Forum president C Balakrishnan.

He said the Corporation in a reply to an application under the Right To Information Act had ensured the completion of the work on SA Road before April 2010. “The construction of medians, a service road of seven metres on both sides, a concrete separation between the road and the drains at a width of three metres and tiled footpaths on both sides were included in the original plan. But all this remain a  dream,” he said. Balakrishnan said, “As the slabs over the drains were laid neither properly nor proportionately, pedestrians are finding it difficult to walk on them. In some places the slabs are missing.”

Meanwhile, a top Corporation official said they are not to be blamed for the present condition of SA Road. “Initially, it was land acquisition that delayed the progress of the project. Later it was included in the City Development Plan and the work was carried out utilising the Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project (KSUDP) funds at a revised budget of ` 8.96 crore. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2010. Once it is completed, complaints will be redressed,” the official said.