MAPUSA
The much-awaited Porvorim elevated corridor will be inaugurated by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on September 9, but motorists will have to wait another two days before the six-lane facility is thrown open to traffic.
PWD Minister Digambar Kamat on Sunday said Gadkari will inaugurate the 5.15-km elevated corridor from the Majestic side at 6 pm on September 9. The corridor will be opened to vehicular traffic from 4 pm on September 11.
In a novel pre-inauguration exercise, the public will be allowed to walk along the elevated highway on September 7 and 8. People will thus get an opportunity to experience the six-lane corridor on foot and click photographs and selfies before vehicles begin using it.
Kamat said the government was conscious of the difficulties faced by residents and commuters from Porvorim, Saligao and Mapusa during the prolonged construction of the project.
“We are aware people from Porvorim, Saligao and Mapusa suffered a lot when the work on the elevated corridor was going on,” Kamat said.
The elevated corridor, designed to ease one of Goa’s busiest traffic bottlenecks on the NH-66, stretches for 5.15 km and is expected to significantly improve traffic movement through Porvorim.
The project was sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs 641.46 crore and subsequently awarded for Rs 364.68 crore.
The project completion has been keenly awaited by motorists who regularly face congestion on the Porvorim stretch, particularly during peak hours and holiday periods.With the opening of the elevated carriageway, through traffic is expected to get a dedicated route above the existing road network, reducing pressure on the busy surface road and improving connectivity between North Goa and Panaji.
The September 11 opening will mark the transition of the corridor from a long-awaited infrastructure project to a functioning six-lane highway, bringing an end to a prolonged period of construction-related disruption for commuters in the Porvorim-Saligao-Mapusa belt.
