Panaji: After over a decade of planning and three years of traffic diversions and dust for construction of the six-lane Porvorim elevated corridor, state govt has now come to the conclusion that the Rs 641 crore flyover is missing ramps.Public works department (PWD) officials are in the process of preparing a detailed project report (DPR) to seek more funding from the Union ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) for ramp construction.An IIM Nagpur team and a MoRTH official inspected the site, while IIT Kharagpur experts were consulted online. All of this pointed to structural shortcomings in the six-lane flyover, which seemed to have gone unnoticed during construction since 2023 by Rajasthan-based RRSM Infra.“At least two ramps have been planned. One will be on the Majestic side. But study is still ongoing and a DPR will be prepared and sent to the Centre for funding. The estimates have not been drawn up yet as the plans are still in the making. We will seek the funds under our next annual plan. It will be proposed as new works. Availability of land, etc, needs to be verified before finalising the DPR for MoRTH’s approval,” said an official.The loopholes in planning became clear soon after the flyover was opened for traffic on Sept 11, this year, after one fatality led to the loss of two lives. It drew focus to the poorly designed entry and exit points of the flyover.Immediately, all entry and exit points were abruptly shut in a knee-jerk reaction to the accident, plunging the traffic back into chaos right from Guirim to Atal Setu, with the traffic pile-up causing congestion up to the Merces junction.While some entry and exit points were opened reluctantly following backlash after installing rumblers as a safety measure, the crucial entry to Atal Setu remains shut for Porvorim residents, apparently for whose convenience the flyover was constructed. There is no possibility of the Atal Setu entry opening any time soon either, as per officials.“It will take some time for the Atal Setu entry to open. There is no timeline decided for its opening as review is still on. Four AI cameras will be installed at the entry and exit points first at four locations. This will be done at the state’s cost,” said an official.Architect and Porvorim resident Dean D’Cruz said that it was clear to planners right from the beginning that widths of the six-lane flyover were compromised at certain points.“The new Porvorim elevated corridor, though a much-needed convenience, suffered from poor planning, with widths narrowed near Majestic Hotel, reducing a two-lane stretch to one. Exit lanes should serve as a third lane and be long enough to prevent traffic from slowing on the corridor. The roads below now vary in width and lack lane markings,” D’Cruz said.
