Team Herald
PONDA: The long-awaited widening of the 9.5-km Ponda-Bhoma stretch of the highway into a four-lane road is set to commence on December 2, with tender processes scheduled for early December. The project is expected to enhance road safety and facilitate smoother traffic flow.
The first phase will cover the stretch from Ponda to Bhoma, while the second phase will extend to Corlim.
It is pertinent to note that Bhoma villagers have been demanding a bypass, and are strongly opposed to the road expansion, which they say would affect their access to temples.
At present, the narrow Ponda-Bhoma road has several sharp turns, and is an accident prone zone starting from GVM Circle, Connem, Priol, Mangueshi junction, Kundaim and Manaswada. The stretch has witnessed horrific accidents that have claimed several lives in the past. The narrow stretch is also plagued by traffic congestion, especially during road accidents.
The Ponda KTC underpass work is nearing completion, and the remaining part of the underpass will be constructed after diverting traffic to another lane.
The project is expected to enhance road safety and facilitate smoother traffic flow.
It may be recalled that the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) approved the project and sanctioned Rs 557 crore for the work and the ministry would soon float a tender for the work in December.
The road stretch from the underpass near the KTC bus stand at Shapur to the government primary school of Bhoma will feature multiple underpasses and culverts at key points along the route.
The Ponda KTC underpass is nearing completion, with soil filling and widening of the road to follow.
Traffic will be diverted to another lane to facilitate the remaining construction.