JOIN US Having realised the long-term potential of concrete roads over bitumen/asphalt roads, the State is planning to lay concrete roads in the heavy rainfall areas, which are plagued by constant deterioration, including over 100 km stretch on the Western Ghats.
The Karnataka Public Works Department (KPWD) has also written to the Centre seeking its approval to construct concrete roads at a cost of Rs 115 crore on the Shiradi Ghat portion of the National Highway- 48, KPWD Secretary N Lakshmana Rao Peshwe said in a presentation to the industry, a copy of which was accessed by Deccan Herald.
Pointing out that concrete roads have a much longer life span (a minimum of 30-40 years) and have low maintenance costs, he said: “We’ve had concrete roads since the reign of Mysore Kings. The Mysore-Bangalore Road, Mysore City roads and Tumkur- Honnavar Roads had served for more than four decades now.”
Bitumen roads, he said, “cannot sustain in harsh climatic conditions, and rain especially deteriorates such roads...”
On the Shiradi portion of NH-48, he said there are constant complaints from people who use that stretch, and as long as the present structure of road continues to exist there will be no respite.
“The State Government has sent a proposal to the Centre to construct a cement concrete road at an estimated cost of Rs 115 crore and is awaiting the approval.”
Further, he said the Department has already developed a ‘road information system’ with details of road network, soil type, rainfall details, traffic, bridges, the existing surface conditions which will be useful for future development of roads.
Improving connectivity
The Department plans to increase the existing 25,000 km of core road network, comprising national highway and state highway, to 40,000 km by 2020 and to convert these roads to two-lane based on the following criteria: ratio of traffic intensity/capacity, population, existing surface condition, road importance/connectivity, backwardness as per the Nanjundappa report and soil type, the presentation revealed.
To achieve the same, the department proposes to construct 3,250 km of two-lane roads every year during the next 10 years, of which, he said, 25 per cent of the road length in heavy rainfall area is proposed to be concreted.
The Department has already taken up construction of concrete roads in Shimoga, Udupi and Manipal, he said.
Besides, to encourage more private players into investing in construction of such roads, Peshwe said, “It is necessary to increase the existing concession period of 20 years to 30 years to attract private investors to bid for concrete roads.”
DH News Service