The Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISIA) has requested the Central government to convert the existing two-lane road of Nilambur bypass into a six-lane expressway with service roads. They have also demanded flyovers at major intersections to enhance road safety and ease traffic.
CODISIA president M. Karthikeyan, in a letter to Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, said Coimbatore has contributed significantly to Tamil Nadu’s gross state domestic product of Rs 2 lakh crore last year. He also pointed out that one of the country’s first BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) projects, the 27-km stretch from Nilambur to Madukarai, was implemented in the district, which is a key route for access to Kerala.
Karthikeyan said that while both ends of the bypass are six-lane, the middle 27 km stretch is only two-lane, which is highly accident-prone and full of blackspots.
Now that the project has been handed over from L&T to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), Kodisia has urged the ministry to expedite the process of converting this stretch into a six-lane expressway.
Karthikeyan also said that once the project is completed, the road will become an ideal route for Coimbatore, connecting the new airport terminal, container depot, railway goods shed, industrial areas, educational institutions, hospitals, IT parks, malls, entertainment spots, and residential areas.
Urging the minister to expedite the project, he said it will not only provide relief to the residents of Coimbatore but it will also benefit people travelling from Kerala to Bengaluru, Chennai, and other cities.
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