After T5, more tunnels, bridges coming up on Srinagar highway

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, March 17

After the T5 tunnel was thrown open to traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH) giving respite to the commuters, the National Highways Authority of India and the Ramban administration are working on more bridges, tunnels and flyovers to bypass some of the stretches on the highway infamous for landslides and shooting stones. Opened on Thursday, the T5 tunnel allows the traffic to bypass Panthyal stretch, known for frequent landslides which often halt the vehicular movement.

Another 924-metre tunnel at Kunfer in Ramban, once open, will reduce the travel distance. Work on one of the twin tubes, which will connect Peerah and Chanderkote, is in full swing and is expected to be thrown open by March end or early April. The work on the second tube will start thereafter.

While talking to The Tribune, Ramban Deputy Commissioner Mussarat Islam said that unlike T5 tunnel that would bypass a treacherous stretch, the Kunfer tunnel would reduce the travel distance by eating up almost three km of the NH stretch.

“The travel time on the highway in Ramban will be decreased significantly by next year due to construction of bridges, tunnels and bypasses,” said the DC.

He also informed that to reduce traffic snarls on the Jammu-Srinagar highway which meanders through some of the inhabited areas, two bypasses are also coming up, including Ramban flyover and Banihal bypass in the district. “Both the areas where these are being constructed witness frequent traffic jams as the road is narrow. While two lanes of the 1.6-km Ramban flyover will be thrown open in the second or third week of April, the deadline of 2.8-km Banihal bypass is December 31 this year,” the DC informed.

The NHAI is also constructing a bridge in Dalwas, an area which is a chronic sinking zone on the NH. In March 2020, villagers of Dalwas had to flee their houses after a major chunk of their land came under a landslide and a stretch of the highway was also damaged, causing suspension of traffic.

To ease travelling

Ramban flyover and Banihal bypass: To open in April and December, respectively, these will help travellers bypass traffic jams.

Dalwas bridge: The NHAI is constructing a bridge in Dalwas , a known sinking zone on the highway that saw a massive landslide in 2020.

Kunfer tunnel: It will reduce almost three km of the stretch for travellers.

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