Hyderabad: There were days when reaching Durgam Cheruvu from the Banjara Hills side was a tedious drive. Not anymore. The Strategic Road Development Programme (SRDP) of the State government has changed the way people in the city commute.
From flyovers to underpasses, elevated corridors, and bridges, the strategy behind the SRDP has reduced traffic congestion in several areas, apart from reducing travel time between several places.
“I have been travelling on this road for over two years, and I never thought that I could reach Biodiversity Junction from Jubilee Hills in 10 minutes.
Earlier, traffic snarls were frequent. Not anymore,” says Mohammed Younus, now a regular user of the flyover from Jubilee Hills Road No 45.
The four-lane elevated corridor from the Road No 45 to Durgam Cheruvu, integrated with the cable-stayed bridge, has eased traffic flow till the Mindspace junction via Durgam Cheruvu. The 1,740-metre-long flyover has also done away with a lot of sharp curves along the route.
The State government’s long-term initiative to boost road infrastructure and address the long-pending traffic problems is yielding positive results. The comprehensive strategy is aimed at not only reducing traffic woes but also creating the infrastructure for future traffic needs in the city.
“There might still be a few battered roads, but compared to those days when most of our roads were narrow, travelling in the city has become a different experience altogether,” says Ram, a techie, who is now a regular on the cable bridge route.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation’s efforts to decongest key junctions too have eased traffic flow. Underpasses and flyovers constructed in different areas have erased long traffic snarls in many places such as LB Nagar, Jubilee Hills Road No 45, Hitec City, Biodiversity Junction, and Punjagutta.
It all started with the Ayyappa Society underpass being open to traffic on January 3, 2018. This, officials say, brought a new phase in road infrastructure development in the city.
This year alone, the GHMC has opened the first-level flyover at Biodiversity Junction, LB Nagar LHS flyover, Kamineni LHS and RHS flyovers, Punjagutta steel bridge, Bairamalguda RHS flyover, the cable-stayed bridge on Durgam Cheruvu, and Jubilee Hills Road No 45 flyover. Three underpasses at Mindspace, Chintalkunta, and Ayyappa Society were inaugurated earlier.
The Punjagutta steel bridge works completed in about three months — February to May. Work on the Balanagar flyover is expected to be completed soon while 18 SRDP works in progress include OU Colony flyover, Khaitlapur RoB, Owaisi flyover, Chandrayangutta extension flyover, Nalgonda crossroads steel bridge, and Uppal elevated corridor.
