View of Harbor Airport Road in front of Kakkanad Media Academy. | Image credit: THULASI KAKKAT
Authorities have turned a blind eye to ensuring safety along the narrow and poorly lit Harbor Airport Road, even though the corridor has become a death trap for motorists and pedestrians.
Three people were killed in the past week on the 11.50km corridor from Kalamassery to Irumpanam when a tanker truck carrying 40,000 liters of ethanol reportedly lurched on one side after the driver miscalculated the width of the road, causing The situation is tense.
Hazards lurk on roads in the form of potholes and shoulders that are much lower than traffic lanes, overgrowth of weeds and shrubs that hamper visibility, and poorly planned, accident-prone intersections. Kerala Roads and Bridges Development Corporation (RBDCK), which developed the road 20 years ago as a 10-meter wide dual-lane corridor, has now acquired 30-meter-wide land. After widening the 2.50km Kalamassery-Bharat Mata College section into a four-lane section, it handed over the section to PWD (Roads Department) in 2020 for further development.
But its further widening as a four-lane extension remains elusive, and PWD is even trying to secure Rs 7.5 lakh, estimated to be used to resurface the existing two-lane, accident-prone corridor. Many organizations outraged, including the Ernakulam District Residents’ Association’s Supreme Council (EDRAAC), have repeatedly protested the delay in widening the corridor parallel to the Edappally-Aroor NH 66 Bypass and its elusive extension to the airport.
The Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) team, led by the then Regional Transport Officer (RTO), submitted a report to the government recommending an urgent need to repair roads, reinforce shoulders, remove safety barriers and push back the compound wall at Collectorate by pushing to widen Collectorate Junction five meters. This report and another submitted by PWD to the government in preparation for the construction of an underpass at the junction are still on paper.
Expressing pain over the increase in accidents on the stretch, MVD sources said investigations showed how potholes, rolling paver blocks, improper road markings and reflectors made the narrow road one of the most accident-prone in the region. one. “The government is hesitant to widen the roads even though most of the vehicles are tanker trucks carrying dangerous goods. To make matters worse, it can Add two lanes at Collectorate Junction. The project can be realized for as little as Rs 1 crore if the government makes a policy decision. It will reduce congestion and accidents while saving fuel and time,” they said.
PWD officials said unless the government approves a Rs 7.5 lakh project to resurface roads and strengthen shoulders, they will be helpless. “Street lights will also be required for the entire 11.50km stretch, while we expect the government to allocate funding for at least the 2023 budget for an underpass at Collectorate Junction and four lanes for the entire corridor,” they added.
