E-Paper
Delayed slip road project puts commuters at risk in Ludhiana
On May 4, they removed the outer wall and added the area to the road, however, the urban body has not yet started the construction work, which has rendered the new area a safety hazard
It has been around three months since the Municipal Corporation (MC) added more area to the Mall Road-Bharat Chowk intersection by removing a structure, but it hasn’t levelled that portion so far, leaving puddles that serve as breeding grounds for mosquitoes in the monsoon season and putting commuters at risk of accidents, especially at night and in the early hours of the morning.
The Mall Road squeezes for around 50–100 metres where it meets the busy intersection. Ever since traffic lights were installed at the intersection, the spot has witnessed persistent traffic congestion. So, to remove the bottleneck, a slip road is to be constructed connecting the Mall Road to Ferozepur Road towards the Jagraon bridge.
MC superintending engineer of the building and road cell Sham Lal Gupta said the road construction work would begin soon. He also said the MC was working on taking the required permissions to remove at least two trees standing in the middle of the area. There is also an electricity pole on that portion that will be relocated. The expansion is being carried out from the road that goes towards Rakh Bagh and the intersection. The land belongs to the sewage board and has an old quarters complex.
The corporation first constructed a wall inside the complex to mark the area that was to be included in the road. On May 4, they removed the outer wall and added the area to the road. However, the urban body has not yet started the construction work, which has rendered the new area a safety hazard. The added area is lower than the road, and it poses a risk of commuters falling into it. There are also no warning signs or reflectors at the site to caution the commuters, especially at night.
The road is included in the state government’s world-class road project. However, no timeline has been announced yet.
“This is a clear safety hazard. This can lead to major accidents. The MC should at least barricade the newly added area with sandbags covered with reflective material to caution the commuters,” said Rahul Verma, member of the Punjab State Road Safety Council.
