Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi   

Construction of bridge on Tiruchi-Padalur section hit

— Photo: M. Moorthy

Affected: The piers erected on the side of a bridge as part of the four-lane project in Tiruchi.

TIRUCHI: The diversion of the surplus discharge from the Mettur reservoir into the Coleroon river has forced the suspension of construction of a new bridge coming up as part of four-lane project on the Tiruchi-Padalur section of the Tiruchi-Chennai Highway.

Work on construction of another major bridge, across the Cauvery river, has also been suspended over the past few days due to the heavy water flow.

This has forced a shift in focus in the project, with the concessionaire Navayuga-Indu-Abhisek, an Indian Consortium, deciding to commence construction of a couple of flyovers (grade separators) along the Tiruchi-Chennai bypass by September 15, ahead of their schedule.

Previously, the construction of the flyovers were planned to be taken up only by January.

The two flyovers would come up at critical junctions on the Bypass Road, at the Palpannai Traffic Island near Ariyamangalam and the TVS Tollgate. “We will be laying the service lanes at the two sites shortly so that the traffic could be diverted through them,” said an official of the consortium. Another flyover would come up at Samayapuram.

“Though we anticipated the water flow in the Cauvery river and completed the construction of the piers, we did not expect the heavy discharge in the Coleroon,” he said.

All the 14 piers for the new bridge across the Cauvery river has been raised and the concessionaire is planning to move additional manpower and equipment to take up further works even when with the water flow.

However, work on raising the 26 piers for the Coleroon bridge, the longest in the stretch, has been disrupted though nearly 70 per cent of the piling works has been completed.

The construction of piers for the bridge is expected to resume only after the water flow stopped. But with the monsoon ahead, the river might get more flow leading to further disruptions.

The construction of the bridge across Upparu has also been disrupted due to water flow.

However, officials of the concessionaire said this would not delay the project as a whole. “That is why we are re-deploying our manpower and equipment for the construction of flyovers, road overbridges and minor bridges,” he said.

Work has already started on six minor bridges and the road overbridge across the railway crossing at Koothur. Two other ROBs will come up across the railway lines at Golden Rock and Ariyamangalam.

The new bridges have been redesigned to accommodate three-lane traffic, to facilitate future expansion, on the directions of the Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways T.R.Baalu.

Meanwhile, earth works on widening the 40-km stretch between Tiruchi and Padalur was under way in full swing. “Ninety per cent of this work is already work. Blacktopping of the carriage ways will begin on a few stretches shortly,” the official said.

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