Ahmedabad to Get 10 Modern Foot Overbridges with Lifts

Ahmedabad: The Amdavad Municipal Corporation (AMC) plans to construct modern foot overbridges (FOBs) with lifts at 10 key locations across the city to provide safer and more convenient road crossings for pedestrians.

The project, being taken up by the AMC’s Bridge Project Department, will be implemented under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. The proposed FOBs are aimed at reducing the risk faced by pedestrians while crossing busy roads carrying heavy and fast-moving traffic. The AMC has invited an Expression of Interest (EOI) for the project, with an estimated cost of around Rs. 4 crore per FOB.

10 locations identified

The proposed FOBs will come up at:

• Jasodanagar Cross Road
• Narol Circle
• Janpath T-Junction
• Krishnanagar
• Thakkarnagar
• Near IIM and Andhajan Mandal
• Near GMDC Ground/Samaras Hostel
• Vastrapur Lake, Shaheed Chowk
• Asarwa Railway Crossing
• Vorana Roja

The crossings will be developed as grade-separated pedestrian facilities, taking into account pedestrian movement and traffic volumes at the respective locations.

Lifts, CCTV and accessibility features

Each FOB will have a passenger lift at both ends, with each lift designed to carry a minimum load of 2,000 kg. The lifts will have a capacity of over 20 passengers and will use Machine Room-Less (MRL) traction or hydraulic technology. The walkway will have a minimum width of three metres, while the vertical clearance from the road will be at least six metres. To ensure uninterrupted operation during power failures, each FOB will also have either a 15 KVA diesel generator or a UPS backup of at least 30 minutes.

Security arrangements will include 10 to 16 CCTV cameras at each FOB, with recordings required to be preserved for at least 30 days.

15-year concession period

The project will be implemented under the Design, Build, Finance, Operate, Maintain and Transfer (DBFOT) model, with a maximum concession period of 15 years.

The construction period will be 14 months, including two months for surveys and design and 12 months for physical construction. Once construction is completed, the private concessionaire will operate and maintain the FOBs for the remainder of the concession period. A five-year Defect Liability Period will also apply from the date of the Completion Certificate for each FOB.

Advertising revenue to fund project

The private concessionaire will have to bear the entire cost of construction, operation and maintenance. The AMC will not provide any capital grant, annuity or viability gap funding for the project.

The company that builds the FOBs will recover the investment through advertising rights on the FOBs. Advertisements will be permitted on a maximum of 40% of the visible surface area of each structure, while a fixed share of the annual advertising revenue will be paid to the AMC.

99% lift availability mandatory

The operator will have to follow the AMC’s Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the operation and maintenance of the FOBs. The requirements include cleaning twice a day, maintaining at least 99% lift availability and ensuring that total lift downtime does not exceed 72 hours in a year.

Two trained operation and maintenance staff or security personnel will be deployed at each FOB in 12-hour shifts. Annual structural health inspections will also be mandatory, with penalties applicable for failure to comply with prescribed maintenance standards.

The AMC will monitor construction and subsequent operation through its officials or an Independent Engineer/Project Monitoring Consultant.

The project is intended to provide safer, more accessible and all-weather pedestrian crossings at busy traffic locations while avoiding a direct capital expenditure burden on the AMC under the PPP model. DeshGujarat