KOCHI: The Public Works Department has come up with a major initiative to ease the traffic woes of West Kochiites. Works Minister Ibrahim Kunj has directed public sector consultancy organisation Kitco to submit a detailed report on the feasibility of setting up a Railway Overbridge (ROB) at Mattanchery Halt. The minister has directed that the report should be sent to the departments concerned by the end of this month. It has been identified that the presence of a manually-operated railway gate causes major traffic bottlenecks in the region. According to Ibrahim Kunj, the proposal for an RoB at Mattancherry Halt was taken up after complaints poured in from the public on the traffic woes at the Halt, especially during peak hours. “Traffic bottlenecks are created in the area during the morning and evening hours. The public blames the employees appointed to operate the gate for causing the delay. But, when we monitored the issue, we found that the situation was even worse. Unlike the rest of the railway crossings, the gate had four doors and opens to the sides. Adding to the woes, the Railways have decided to increase freight traffic in the region, a major problem which will affect the public in the longer run, if the gate is not removed. Closing the doors alone takes a lot of time. The only solution is to convert the railway gate into a modern one or to construct an RoB in the area,” the minister said. He added that the Navy was against the idea of converting the gate into a modern one. “It has informed us that if the gate is modernised, it would disturb the landing of their aircraft. However, it is willing to agree to the construction of an RoB,” Ibrahim Kunj added. The major users of the road are long-distance buses which traverse to and fro Alappuzha and other regions on a regular basis. Also large number of container lorries move around the region. Earlier, a study was conducted on the feasibility of setting up a subway there. But the move was dropped after the study revealed that the loose and mushy soil in the area does not have the capability to support large vehicles. On the proposal to set up an RoB in the area where a huge number of flight traffic takes place, a Navy official said: “If the plan favours us, we are willing to give the nod. If it disturbs the landing and take-off of aircraft, the officials should find another solution,” he said.
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