Slow underpass work hits traffic on Bengaluru Highway

Alternative traffic arrangement will be introduced soon: senior police official

The slow pace of the ongoing pedestrian underpass work is taking a toll on the traffic movement along the busy Chennai - Bengaluru Highway (NH-48) with vehicles, especially goods-laden lorries and trailers, taking at least 15 minutes to pass through the Vellore - Katpadi intersection. On Friday, a trailer that was proceeding towards Chennai was stopped on the highway near the intersection by the traffic police and the officials of the Larsen & Toubro Ltd (L&T), which executes the underpass project on behalf of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), as the trailer was wider than the narrow road space available for vehicles on the highway, which has a median too. As a result, other vehicles were diverted to the service lane for a distance of around 500 metres before the vehicles were allowed to join the highway again. "An alternative traffic arrangement, including diversion of lorries and trucks to service lanes, especially during night with safety features will be introduced soon," said a senior police officer in Vellore.