Motorists call for urgent widening of Tiruchi-Karaikudi national highway
As the volume of traffic on the Tiruchi-Karaikudi Highway witnesses steady increase, motorists have called for expeditious implementation of widening the existing road into a
As the volume of traffic on the Tiruchi-Karaikudi Highway witnesses steady increase, motorists have called for expeditious implementation of widening the existing road into a four-lane way. The 90-km Highway No. 210 from Tiruchi to Karaikudi was widened as a two-way road with paved shoulders, besides constructing culverts, about 16 years ago. The section was initially planned to be made a four-lane highway. But the volume of traffic did not support the proposal at that time. There were no major issues to drive on the newly laid highway in the initial stages as the volume of traffic was low.
However, it has risen gradually over the years. It has witnessed manifold increase over the last 16 years. Thousands of vehicles ply on the road all through the day. A large number of trucks use the highway to transport blue metal and m-sand to various parts of Tiruchi, Pudukottai, and neighbouring districts. Besides Rameswaram, Ramanathapuram, Paramakudi, Karaikudi, Devakottai, and Sivaganga, the highway links several interior towns and coastal towns in Pudukottai district. The standard norm for forming a new four-lane highway or widening the two-lane highway into a four-lane one was that the particular stretch should have crossed 10,000 PCUs.
A recent study undertaken by the Highways Authority of India (NHAI) revealed that the volume of traffic on the Tiruchi-Karaikudi Highway (NH 210) has crossed 10,000 passenger car units (PCU) a day. Considering the demand of road users, the NHAI prepared a Detailed Project Report on widening the highway into a four-lane way. It is said that it had approved the project as well. Road users and motorists have urged the NHAI to expedite the project. Durai Vaiko, Member of Parliament, Tiruchi, took up the issue with the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways recently.
“It becomes increasingly difficult to drive on the highway, particularly between Tiruchi and Pudukottai, due to heavy traffic. Except on a few short stretches, we cannot drive between 50 kmph and 70 kmph. Steps should be taken to start the project as early as possible,” says R. Thiruvengadam, an activist of Tiruchi.
The BriefWire