Potholed roads pose risk to motorists’ life

The potholes and craters that have surfaced on roads in different parts of Mangaluru and surrounding areas, as well as national highways that pass through the district, are affecting the traffic and inconveniencing the motorists.

Navigating through the pothole-ridden service road at Pumpwell, Nethravathi old bridge, Kottara, service road at Thokkottu, the road from Thokkottu to Konaje, the road from Melkar to Mani and BC Road towards Gundya on NH 75 have become a Herculean task for the motorists.

Further, the road leading to the private bus stand in State Bank area too has been damaged fully and is waiting for a facelift.

Rajashekar, a two-wheeler rider, said that though the concerned authorities are filling up the road with gravel, it is getting washed away in one spell of rain. There is a need to take up asphalting of the damaged roads instead of patchwork.

The roads ridden with potholes naturally lead to accidents. Vehicular traffic is moving at a slow pace due to the damaged roads from Thokkottu to Deralakatte, said a motorist who travels on the stretch daily.

“The service road in Pumpwell is in a bad condition near the underpass at Ujjodi. The stretch of the road with numerous potholes is often leading to traffic congestion during evening hours,” said Kiran, who commutes daily on his two-wheeler between Mangaluru and Thokkottu.

While lorries and buses manage to pass over the potholes, two-wheeler riders have a tough time, he added.

The surface of Padil Railway underbridge road has been completely damaged due to water-logging. Water gets accumulated on the road and motorists have a tough time, particularly during the rainy season.

Govind, who daily uses the underbridge, said, “Authorities have failed to solve the issue on water-logging. As a result, the underpass is ridden with potholes and craters, making the ride difficult. We can’t even avoid the potholes.”

The pothole-ridden stretches on BC Road on NH 75 have been giving a bumpy ride for the motorists. Though the authorities had taken up patchwork on the stretch in the first week of October, the sudden rainfall stopped the work.

When it rains, the motorists fail to judge the depth of the pothole and meet with accidents. Several two-wheeler riders have met with accidents at the site.

An autorickshaw driver said that they suffer the most due to the poor road conditions.

“Our vehicles are getting damaged frequently due to bad roads,” he added.