Residents seek permanent safety measures on dilapidated bridge in Vellore
Residents have demanded permanent safety measures, including increasing the height of the parapet wall of the dilapidated Road Over Bridge (ROB), to prevent motorists from
Residents have demanded permanent safety measures, including increasing the height of the parapet wall of the dilapidated Road Over Bridge (ROB), to prevent motorists from accidently falling over the bridge. Residents said the decade-old bridge was a lifeline for them as it helped them reach key public facilities, such as government hospitals, schools, market and bus terminus, across the railway track. “The retaining wall is too low, causing motorists who accidentally hit it to fall off the bridge. The height of the wall should be increased to ensure the safety of motorists,” said G.
Ramesh, a motorist. State Highways officials said the bridge was jointly built by State Highways and Southern Railway over a decade ago. Four years ago, the facility was handed over to Corporation for regular maintenance, including black topping of the carriageway. The officials said that the total height of the retaining wall on both sides of the bridge was around 1.5 feet. The wall was designed based on traffic on the route. Over the years, the bridge has been witnessing an increased number of vehicles, especially two-wheelers.
This reduces the total availability of road space for motorists. Raising the height of the wall would prevent motorists from falling off the bridge, they said. Highways officials said they planned to increase the height of the wall to three feet as per Indian Roads Congress guidelines. Of the total length of 600 metres, 100 metres would be raised at an estimated ₹20 lakh, as frequent accidents were reported on that stretch. However, Highways officials said the tenders for the work were stopped due to procedural delays.
As a stop-gap measure, reflector sticks, blinkers, and warning sign boards were installed to ensure the safety of motorists until the proposal to increase the height of the retaining wall was cleared by the State government. “We have apprised the District Collector about the need to increase the height of retaining wall of the bridge during road safety meetings. However, the State government has to release funds for the work,” a Highways official said.
The BriefWire