Mangaluru: NHAI hopes to open one carriageway of the delayed six-lane Kulur bridge on the busy Mangaluru-Udupi stretch of NH-66 by the end of Nov.NHAI Mangaluru project director Abdulla Javed Azmi told TOI that slab work on the new bridge is under way and one carriageway is expected to be opened to traffic by Nov-end.The new six-lane bridge, being constructed between the two existing bridges across the Phalguni river, has a total project length of 776 metres. The main bridge and the service road bridges will have a length of 182.5 metres.Shinde Developers Pvt Ltd took up the project at an approximate cost of Rs 70 crore, with completion originally scheduled in 18 months. Construction reportedly began in 2021, but the project has been delayed for several reasons. Azmi said opening one carriageway would provide some relief.Meanwhile, poor road conditions along the Kulur stretch have come under focus, with craters and potholes emerging at several locations, including on the bridges across the river.The DYFI Panjimogaru unit has demanded immediate repairs to the national highway and service roads. The organisation alleged that damaged stretches were making vehicle movement difficult and contributing to long traffic jams. It said commuters travelling between Mangaluru and Udupi, airport-bound passengers and local residents were facing difficulties, and alleged that accidents were occurring regularly in the area.On the road condition, Azmi said the wearing-coat layer on the bridge surface had been removed at several places and needed to be levelled again.He said small potholes on the highway stretch were already being attended to. However, extensive repairs are difficult at present as bitumen plants in the region are not operational during the monsoon. Azmi said NHAI is in touch with an agency that is expected to restart its bitumen plant shortly. Once the plant resumes operations and bitumen becomes available, the affected stretches will be permanently rectified.NHAI had asphalted the affected stretches before the monsoon, but the availability of bitumen for further permanent repairs has been affected by the closure of plants during the rainy season, Azmi added.
