Aiming to reduce traffic congestion in the city, the Guntur Municipal Corporation is taking up road widening works on five major roads in the city.
Municipal Commissioner Keerthi Chekuri, who had set the ball rolling for the road widening works, said that the civic body had completed the process of paying compensation for structures that would need to be razed. and issued TBR bonds.
The five major roads which are set to be widened are: Nandi Velugu Road, from NTR Circle near RTC Bus Stand to Venkateswara Swamy Temple. The 1.11 km stretch of road widening has been held up for the last five years. Ms. Keerthi, after assuming charge in April 2022, ensured that the structural compensation of ₹3.49 crore was paid to the owners of 176 constructions. The road leads to a Road over-Bridge (RoB) connecting Guntur to Takkellapadu and Tenali.
Yet another major road is the Palakaluru road, which begins at Gujjanagundla junction. The GMC has completed payment of structural compensation to owners and has taken up works in two phases. In Phase 1, the road between Ratnagiri Colony to Old Railway line at Pedapalakaluru would be widened to 80 feet with a central divider. The second phase from Old Railway Line to Urban Health centre would also be taken up. A major portion of the road is owned by the Roads and Buildings Department. The GMC had so far paid ₹2.43 crore to the owners of buildings.
The AT Agraharam Road extending to 1.9 km would also be widened to 80 feet. The vital road is expected to ease traffic congestion and ensure better connectivity to people living in one of the oldest colonies in the city.
In One Town, the Kugler Hospital road remains a bottleneck, until the GMC began widening the road to 60 feet . The GMC had paid ₹2.63 crore to owners of 46 structures.
The Rama Namam Ksthethram Road is also being widened to 80 feet.
“The GMC is taking up road widening works after many years and we want to ensure people parting with their structures are paid compensation. The road widening will change the face of the city,” said Ms. Keerthi Chekuri.
