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NHAI plans underpass at accident blackspot on highway near Ambala
National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) write to Union ministry, says underpass at Sultanpur chowk, an accident blackspot, on the Ambala-Chandigarh highway would help streamline local traffic
In a bid to streamline traffic and reduce the risk of accidents, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has written to the Union ministry of road transport and highways for constructing an underpass at Sultanpur chowk on the Ambala-Chandigarh expressway.
Speaking about the same, NHAI engineer Abhimanyu Malik said, “Due to heavy pedestrian movement, constructing a foot-over bridge was also on cards, but due to crossing of two-wheelers and tractors, it was cancelled. As a precautionary measure, pedestrian guardrails and other safety equipment were installed. We have also spoken to the PWD and they are preparing for a rail over-bridge.”
“We have also written to the ministry last month about the requirement of an underpass for the movement of local traffic. Constructing a flyover was not found feasible at the chowk,” the official added.
Traffic woes
Nearly 10 km away from the district headquarters, the Sultanpur chowk is one of the 14 black spots in the district and witnesses high-traffic density. Locals say the situation is worsened due to the presence of a railway crossing at the Dhulkot fatak, which results in vehicles lining-up all the way up to the intersection in the evening.
Sushil, a daily-wager employed at a shop near the chowk said, “Most of the accidents take place due to speeding buses either taking the Chandigarh highway from the service road or vice versa.”
Manish Anand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member from ward number 7 in the municipal corporation (MC) house, meanwhile, demanded that the crossing be permanently closed for local traffic.
“It was discussed earlier that the traffic could cross through other cuts below flyovers, but the locals believe that this will hassle the movement of school-going children. We will raise the issue again before the police,” he said.
In a letter to the ministry of road transport and highways dated November 8, 2021, the superintendent of police (SP) Jashandeep Singh Randhawa had said a survey on black spots conducted by the NHAI, the public works department (PWD), and road transport authority (RTA), revealed that nine accidents took place at the spot, killing six people in the last three years.
The SP asked the ministry to install thermo plastic strips and steps to allow safe pedestrian movement and, if required, a flyover. Police documents also reveal that maximum accidents at the chowk took place due to illegal cuts, non-working condition of the traffic lights and lack of proper road markings.
As per the definition, a black spot is declared if five or more fatal accidents take place around 500 m of an area at a particular spot in a three-year period. In December last year, five passengers were killed and nine were injured in a collision of two private buses opposite the Healing Touch Hospital, a stone’s throw from the spot.
Traffic lights at the chowk have also been lying non-functional for the past several months, leading to chaos at one of the major intersections of the city that is also prone to accidents.
On being asked about the lights, the SP said the highway authorities would deal with the issue. Malik, however, passed the buck for the maintenance of traffic lights back onto the police.
