The construction of five new flyovers and four-lane elevated expressway from New Kelani Bridge to Athurugiriya as a part of easing traffic congestion in the capital and Kandy will be launched by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa today (7).
The inauguration ceremony is scheduled to be held with the participation of a limited number of people as per the health regulations in place in view of the pandemic.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa will participate in the ceremony via new technology from Temple Trees, a Highways Ministry release said.
Highways Minister Johnston Fernando said that the implementation of the project was a manifestation of the government’s commitment to realising the visions and policies of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’ in line with plans for sustainable development. This year’s budget made special emphasis on finding solutions for the traffic jams in main cities, the minister said adding that as a part of easing traffic congestion Colombo and its suburbs and Kandy, five new flyovers and an elevated expressway from the New Kelani Bridge to Athurugiriya would be constructed.
Flyovers would be constructed at Kohuwala junction, Getambe Junction, an overpass near the Slave Island Railway Station to Justice Akbar Mawatha, Uttarananda Mawatha and another flyover connecting two overhead bridges. A flyover will be constructed across Beira Lake and Slave Island to the Bala Dhaksha Mawatha and another connecting Chittampalam A. Gardiner Mawatha. Cabinet approval has been granted for these projects.
The four-lane elevated expressway from the New Kelani Bridge to Athurugiriya is planned to reduce huge traffic congestion created by vehicles coming from the Southern Expressway to Colombo and those from Battaramulla, Kaduwela and Aturugiriya to Colombo. It is 16.4 km in length and estimated cost is Rs 134.9 billion. The construction would be done by the China Harbour Engineering Company in 36 months. The elevated expressway will start from the New Kelani Bridge and run through Kolonnawa, Rajagiriya, Buthgamuwa, Battaramulla, Koswatte, Pothuarawa, Hokandara to the Outer Circular Expressway. There would be inter-exchanges at Orugodawatte, Rajagriya, Koswatte, Hokandara and at Dematagoda connecting the Baseline Road. There would be another inter-exchange linking the elevated expressway to the Outer Circular Expressway at Athurugiriya.
The Flyover at Kohuwala junction will be constructed with the financial aid from the Hungarian government at a cost of Rs.2,648 million. The overhead bridge would be of 217.30 meters in length and 9.4 meters in width overarching a four-lane road connecting Nugegoda and Kalubowila controlled by traffic signals. The project is envisaged to be completed in 22 months.
The Flyover at Getambe junction will be constructed with financial aid from the Hungarian government at a cost of Rs. 9,451 million. It would be 396.70 meters in length and its branch-flyover would be 285 meters in length. The width of the flyover would be covered in three segments. The main flyover would be of 9.40 meters in length and counted together with the branch flyover the total width would be 12.90 meters. The width of the branch-flyover from Kandy to Peradeniya would be 6.40 meters. In addition it is planned to construct the underway enabling two or three vehicles at once and it comprises a 30 meter long four-lane iron bridge from Peradeniya to Kandy. The project is envisaged to be completed in 28 months.
Length of the Flyover at the Justice Akbar Mawatha would be 207 meters. It would be 8.4 meters in width. The flyover at the Uttarananda Mawatha will be 396 meters in length and 10.4 meters in width. The flyover connecting the two aforementioned flyovers would be 310 meters in length and 6.9 meters in width. Total cost for the three aforementioned flyovers is estimated at Rs. 5,270 million. It is planned to be completed in 12 months and construction work of the flyovers will be done by Maga Engineering.
The Flyover across Beira Lake and the Slave Island Railway Station connecting Bala Dhaksha Mawatha and Chittampalam A. Gardiner Mawatha is planned to be completed in one year. It will be 360 meters in length and 11 meters in width. The total construction cost is estimated at 2,730 million rupees and the work is to be completed by the Access Engineering PLC.
