Delay in widening Thanjavur road frustrates commuters

TRICHY: It has been two months since the state highways department announced a plan to widen the Thanjavur main road connecting vintage Trichy with two national highways, but the civil works are yet to commence much to the discomfiture of the local people. Though a tender was floated and a contractor identified subsequently, the delay in widening the congested stretch has been keeping the encroachments and traffic snarls very much alive on the stretch.
Paying heed to the long-pending demand of motorists and residents, the highways department had in May planned to widen a stretch of the much congested road.Serving as a vital link for old Trichy localities including Varaganeri, Palakkarai and EB road with the city’s extension parts, Thanjavur main road handles a heavy volume of vehicles including those of tourists from the western districts heading to the delta districts. The road which branches off from Gandhi market merges with Palapannai junction where two national highways, Trichy-Thanjavur and Chennai-Madurai, intersect. It is riddled with encroachments, thus shrinking the available motorable space. Owing to the demand and space available to widen, the highways department had in May said that a contractor had been identified to widen the road.
Out of the 2.2-km-long stretch of Thanjavur main road, the highways department has proposed to widen the 800-metre stretch between Palpannai junction and Rettaivaikal bridge. While the actual width of the 2.2 km stretch varies between 9 metres and 15 metres, the proposed widening works will see the width between Palpannai junction and Rettaivaikal bridge increase by 1 to 3 metres. “Encroachments every day are literally taking away even the existing portion of the road. More than widening, the authorities should keep a constant check on traders who make use of the Thanjavur main road to place goods,” G Dhanasekar, a resident of Varaganeri, said.
Work on the stormwater drain at an outlay of Rs 2 crore was scheduled to commence by the end of May as part of the widening project. Besides locals, incoming tourists and pilgrims from Coimbatore and Karur districts heading to Velankanni, Nagore and Kumbakonam mostly opt for Thanjavur main road to reach Cauvery delta districts. For them, the proposed widening will bring down the time spent at traffic snarls. Explaining the delay, the highways department said that the contractor identified was preoccupied with another project but that the widening would be taken up on Thanjavur main road at the earliest. “We have intimated Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) to do their part as electric posts ought to be moved. Works will be taken up at the earliest,” the official source said.