Barricading starts for elevated corridor construction on AB Road:Mixed traffic for 2 years; issues persist despite BRTS removal

With the removal of the BRTS system on AB Road, most bus stops have already been demolished, and the remaining ones will be removed within the next 10 days. However, public inconvenience has not reduced, as barricading is being done by the construction company for an elevated corridor along a crucial 7.40 km stretch where the bus lane existed. As a result, all vehicles will run in mixed lanes for nearly two years. Buses will also operate in the same lane and stop at different points, meaning there will be no immediate traffic relief between LIG and Naulakha. Experts say the company should not take up such a long stretch simultaneously and suggest limiting work to smaller sections, ideally from one intersection to the next, starting with LIG to Shivaji Vatika. Traffic issues similar to Bhanwarkuan service road expected The BRTS begins from Niranjanpur, where flyover construction is already underway, affecting traffic coming from Dewas Naka. Further ahead, work on the Satyasai flyover is impacting traffic up to Vijay Nagar, with vehicles currently moving in two lanes on both sides. Police have also not yet cleared seized vehicles from the Vijay Nagar roads. Experts warn that conditions similar to the Bhanwarkuan flyover service road are likely from Vijay Nagar to Satyasai and Niranjanpur. Collector assures review of barricading 60% traffic expected to shift to elevated corridor According to the administration’s report, around 60% of traffic will move to the elevated corridor once completed, easing congestion at seven major intersections. The corridor, to be built under the Central Road Fund, will be approximately 7.40 km long and four-laned, with an estimated cost of ₹350 crore. It will be constructed by the PWD’s bridge cell unit and will run from LIG Square through Palasia, Geeta Bhavan, Shivaji Vatika, GPO, and Indira Gandhi statue to Naulakha Square. Three major exit arms will be part of the corridor, with construction in the first phase set to begin between LIG and Shivaji Vatika.