Vadodara, Editor’s note

Traveling between Ahmedabad and Mumbai by road has been like a hell due to same old problem – traffic jam on both sides of Narmada river bridge in Bharuch.

For last seven days, at least 10-km long traffic jam has been witnessed continuously due to ongoing repair work of Sardar bridge. And there’s no exaggeration in this statement.

Existing Sardar bridge over river Narmada is so old and inefficient that practically it is beyond repair. When you pass on this bridge, it literally shakes up. It is due to absence of any other alternative route, the government keeps repairing Sardar bridge every now and then. Every repair work causes traffic jam on both sides for kilometers and for hours and days! The present repair work has taken seven days so far!

This stretch which is a part of the busiest highways in India falls under central government’s purview. It is centre’s responsibility to build a new bridge here. The UPA government in centre was so inefficient that its one of the top leaders and Rajya Sabha MP elected from Gujarat Ahmed Patel who belongs to Bharuch had to issue a threat to his government that he would go on fast and dharna if new bridge project is not executed in speed(in 2010 Rs. 450 cost was sanctioned and work was allotted to HCC, but they backed out later for some reasons. The work was later again awarded to L&T at a cost of Rs. 450 crore in 2013 and it started too. At the same time MP Ahmed Patel had compelled to remove the toll booth on this stretch to ease traffic problem.)

UPA has gone, and NDA is here, but construction work for new bridge has not been in progress at satisfactory level! At times it feels the area should be transferred to Chinese administration for fast implementation of river bridge project, because it seems we as a nation are just not capable to execute the project in necessary speed!

Coming back to the immediate issue, the traffic of Sardar bridge has been presently diverted to nearby Golden bridge which is over 100 years old. This bridge is too narrow and can carry only two vehicles side by side. Needless to say that repair work of Sardar bridge has added multi-fold burden to this poor-old-narrow Golden bridge, and as a result, long and terrible queues of vehicles are regular.

According to an order issued by magistrate of Bharuch, Vadodara-Bharuch four-wheel traffic will need to be diverted from Nabipur chowkdi to Dayadara-Hingla chowkdi and Bharuch city. Vadodara-Dahej big size vehicles will need to be diverted from Nabipur to Dayadara and then to Jambusar chowkdi to Dahej. This order will be effective till 11 February. Vehicles to Vadodara could be diverted from Rajpipla chowkdi to Mulad chowkdi via Jhagadia, Rajpardi, Rajpipla.

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