Flyover to decongest busy Garkhal junction delayed

Tribune News Service

Ambika Sharma

Solan, October 23

The proposed flyover to decongest the traffic-ridden Garkhal junction has been delayed with its design awaiting completion.

A survey to construct a flyover has finally begun to decongest the Garkhal junction on the Dharampur-Kasauli road. The road leads to Kasauli, which is a favourite weekend destination of tourists.

Officials of the Public Works Department (PWD) had entrusted the task to survey the junction to Larsen and Toubro (L&T) in June. It was supposed to prepare a feasibility report within 45 days while taking into consideration factors, including economic, technical, legal, etc.

Private land will be acquired to construct this flyover. A C-shaped structure, the flyover will extend from near the bus stand at Garkhal on the Garkhal-Dharampur road and will be constructed across the valley. It will culminate at the fag end of Garkhal bazaar on the Kasauli road. The 240-m flyover will be triple lane structure having two piers and two abutments. About 50-m private land of three individuals would be acquired partially for its construction.

The construction of the flyover is the need of the hour as traffic has registered a rise in the last two decades. With ribbon development, where buildings are present in a continuous row along the road, there is little scope to expand the existing roads.

A study undertaken by a National Green Tribunal’s panel on the carrying capacity of the Kasauli Planning Area in 2017 had also stressed the need to decongest the Garkhal junction where five roads converge.

ML Sharma, Executive Engineer, PWD, Kasauli Division, informed that, “The design to construct the flyover was being prepared but its work would now be undertaken after the Assembly polls in view of the model code of conduct.”

Residents are forced to stay indoors during the weekends in view of traffic snarls at this junction. Since it leads to the key tourist destination of Kasauli, a beeline of tourist vehicles is seen here throughout the year.

“The single-lane roads are choked with vehicles during the weekend and it becomes difficult for the pedestrians to even walk. Elderly and children hesitate to venture out and it is unsafe to even walk,” said Rakesh, a local resident.

Policemen too struggle to keep the traffic moving as the Garkhal-Kasauli road ahead of the junction was too narrow and single lane. Two vehicles fail to cross at several points resulting in a virtual traffic chaos. With the successive governments failing to undertake expansion of the roads in the last several decades, the local residents are facing the brunt of traffic influx.

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