Steps sought to fast-track Chilavannur Bund Road work

Expressing concern over the inordinate delay in clearing bottlenecks on Chilavannur Bund Road, NGOs and residents’ associations have urged authorities to immediately widen narrow sections of the road to decongest SA Road and Vyttila Junction.

They also demanded the construction of a link road connecting SA Road to the parallel Bund Road.

Highlighting the urgent need to acquire land from three owners to take forward the Bund Road development project, Vyttila Janakeeya Sadas secretary Foji John said this would enable a significant number of vehicles traveling to and from SA Road to bypass Vyttila Junction. “For years, motorists traveling from the city towards Thripunithura, Kottayam and Alappuzha have struggled to cross the poorly planned junction, where further widening of the bell mouths leading to and from SA Road would be difficult,” he said.

He added that the Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) should expedite the acquisition of several long-pending plots near Thykoodam to ensure best use of Bund Road as an alternative corridor. Simultaneously, steps may be taken to construct a road connecting SA Road and Bund Road along the eastern bank of the Chilavannur River, whose banks are being developed under the Padmasarovaram project. The proposed link road may pass through lands that are currently cleared of encroachments. This will allow vehicles traveling from the city towards Vyttila and NH Ring Road to make a U-turn at Vyttila Janatha Road and proceed via the link road to Bund Road. Motorists can also reach Champakkara by heading east on the NH Ring Road, he added.

Anil Cleetus, president of Toc-H Road Residents Association, said many cities in India and abroad have adopted similar measures to decongest bottleneck junctions like Vyttila, where multiple arterial roads converge at the NH Ring Road. “Work has already begun on a walkway along the Chilavannur River. A link road can be built alongside it at a reasonable cost, which will significantly ease congestion in and around Vyttila and reduce vehicular pollution,” he said.

Girijavallabhan, an Eroor-based lawyer and socio-environmental activist, Chief Minister also urged the GCDA to widen the narrow bell mouth of Bund Road in Thykoodam to ensure smooth vehicular flow.