PONDA: The Borim Bridge repair work commenced on Monday today and is expected to continue till Oct 30. However, unhappy over its frequent repairs, Borim locals including Sarpanch and panchas have demanding to process to construct an alternate bridge be expedited as they fear that the bridge could collapse any moment.
Demanding that government should now think seriously and accord priority to the construction of new bridge, Sarpanch Bhavana Naik threatened to lead the people’s agitation road if the government failed to do so. Naik and panch Sunil Sawkar inspected the repair work. “We want a new bridge and bypass road”, Naik said and informed that the Borim bridge has not only turned old but village is also facing traffic congestion due to traffic diversion from Cortalim.
Sawkar said a video of the Borim Bridge shaking recently went viral on social media. This caused panic among the public who complained to the panchayat, which threatened to stage an agitation. The NH officials finally began the bridge repair work.
Stating that the bridge could collapse any time due to overload, Sawkar said, “The bridge links North to South Goa. If the same collapses, commuters will face great hardship. In such case, government has no alternative route to ferry commuters and vehicles plying on this route. The ferry service cannot be a substitute, as thousands of vehicles ply on the bridge. Since many years we have raised this issue continuously and Herald has also highlighted the issue.”
He said, “It’s time to construct another bridge before something untoward happens. The bridge is being repaired and used regularly. Though the National Highway authorities say the bridge is safe, many people, who commute along the bridge, fear that it cannot carry the current load of heavy vehicles.”
The cost of repair and annual maintenance two year ago was Rs 10 crore. Despite the repairs and the annual maintenance people still fear that the bridge may collapse any moment, he said.
He questioned why the government can’t construct a second bridge at Borim to reduce the load on the existing one, when three bridges have been constructed on Mandovi and a second bridge is under construction on Zuari.
Sawkar said the Borim bridge was inaugurated in 1986. Though the bridge is only around 35 years old, its condition is that of a 50-year-old structure as it bear the load of heavy vehicles diverted from Cortalim Bridge for past decade. The life span of the bridge has come down greatly due to traffic overload following the diversion of heavy vehicles from Cortalim Bridge ten years ago.
Meanwhile, National Highway sources said an alternate bridge plan is ready and is awaiting central government’s approval. It is learnt that many highway works in Goa are pending due to opposition and obstruction from the locals.
Sources say till the ongoing works are completed, the Central government is in no mood to approve new projects.
When contacted, highway officials and PWD engineers said the bridge design is similar to that of the Zuari Bridge. According to the consultant, the condition of the bridge has not deteriorated and they are repairing it regularly and strengthening its structure with the external pre-stressing technique. The same method was used for the Zuari Bridge some years ago.
National Highway sources said they are working on a new parallel bridge and bypass road for Borim to reduce the load on the existing bridge.
The PWD office has reportedly prepared a plan for another bridge and is regularly following up the matter with the Central government. However it not yet approved.
On account of finger type expansion joint repairs, one lane is closed while the other is used for two-way traffic.
