Link roads thrown open to traffic in Hyderabad

The move to entrust Hyderabad Road Development Corporation Limited (HRDCL) with the development of missing link roads has started bearing fruits with more link roads being thrown open to traffic on Monday for free flow of traffic.

The State government, with the intention of improving road infrastructure in Hyderabad, had launched several initiatives, including the Strategic Road Development Programme (SRDP), Network wide Traffic Management with the help of ITS (Traffic Police) and most crucially, the development of missing link roads by the HRDCL.

The concept of developing missing road links is the brainchild of Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao. During the last six months, HRDCL has been executing works in full steam as a result of which three link roads were opened to traffic on Monday, said Mayor Bonthu Rammohan.

Speaking about the efforts gone into the development of link roads, Rama Rao said the mapping of the core road network of the city was done and this was again synchronised with the Hyderabad Road master plan.

In the past, roads were laid but there used to be a missing link of half km or over a km between two arterial roads. As per the instructions of Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, measures were



planned for traffic load distribution and easing traffic congestion by developing such missing link roads, he said.

These projects are basically to improve mobility along the primary traffic corridors. After identifying certain links in the road network that can provide effective relief to traffic congestion on major corridors at a relatively low budget, HRDCL is developing the missing roads.

Accordingly, under Phase I, 135 links are being developed covering a total distance of about 126 km. Works pertaining to about 44.7 km with an estimated cost of Rs 313.65 crore are under progress in Phase I(a) and balance links will be taken up in continuous process of development.

Pointing to the new link road between Old Bombay highway and DPS via Engineering Staff College of India, the Minister said many did not even believe that a link road could be developed there given the hillocks and terrain conditions.

“But HRDCL developed this link road in six months. This stretch will now be developed on the lines of Necklace Road to facilitate children and elderly people spend quality time,” Rao said, adding the Khajaguda Lake would also be developed and beautification works would be taken up shortly.