Work on the new vehicular subway on the Chennai - Bengaluru Highway (NH 48), which is maintained by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in Ranipet has begun.
The NHAI officials said that the ₹22-crore-subway is being built at Puttuthakku, a border village near Arcot town on the highway connecting Ranipet with Vellore district. Puttuthakku village is one of the ‘black spots’ within Ranipet district limits on the highway.
These black spots are accident-prone that are based on the reports given by the police to the district administration.
“As of now, work has commenced on the available space along service lanes of the highway. Once tunneling work starts, traffic on the highway will be diverted to its service lanes. The new underpass will be ready by 2025,” a NHAI official told The Hindu.
As per design, the new subway will accommodate two-wheelers, cars and buses. This will help to reduce the total number of U turns on the stretch to prevent accidents. The stretch has a few government schools, primary healthcare centres and car service centres.
The new spacious campus of CMC is situated on the elevated portion of the highway where the underpass work has started. Every day, the hospital, including its main campus in Vellore, gets nearly one lakh visitors. At present, pedestrians have to walk at least 500 metres to the nearest pedestrian crossing at Puttuthakku junction.
Further, the need for the underpass was felt as students, office goers, farmers, and lorries and truck drivers use ‘U’ turns to drive on the highway from the service lane. It has affected the free flow of traffic on the highway and also resulted in frequent accidents especially during rush hour.
Currently, the stretch between CMC at Puttuthakku village in Ranipet and Vellore Collectorate, a distance of at least 15 km, does not have an U turn for lorries, trucks and buses.
As per norms, each vehicular underpass on the highway should be built at a distance of 1.5 kms. Also, such facilities can come up at key intersections, crowded spots like food joints on the highway. As per plan, the new underpass will be 4.5 metres high and 20 metres wide. Currently, the highway between Krishnagiri and Walajapet (Ranipet district), a distance of 148 km, has 17 such underpasses.
