New Sadar Flyover Landing Planned Beyond RBI Sq To Ease Congestion

Nagpur: Traffic congestion caused due to the Sadar flyover landing ahead of Kasturchand Park (KP) Metro station is expected to ease as MahaMetro has finalised a revised alignment that involves rerouting an arm of the flyover through KP, and creating another landing on the road from the petrol pump at Samvidhan (RBI) Square to Zero Mile. At present, the traffic police have prohibited vehicular movement from RBI Square to LIC Square to prevent gridlock and collisions due to the narrow landing near KP Metro station and lack of adequate dispersal space. Traffic moving from RBI Square to LIC Square is currently diverted to Residency Road, allowed to take a U-turn in front of the NIT office before proceeding to LIC Square. The diversion aimed to manage persistent jams and safety risks until a permanent structural fix could be devised and executed.
In the past, Union minister Nitin Gadkari had publicly pulled up officials over the flawed landing and directed MahaMetro to implement a permanent solution.Senior MahaMetro officials said the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the redesigned flyover is in its final stage and is expected to be completed by the weekend, paving the way for construction to begin immediately thereafter. Officials clarified that the existing flyover landing will not be demolished. Vehicles coming from RBI square will continue to climb the flyover from this point, while those coming from Katol Road and Chindwara Road will descend on the road beyond RBI Square via the new landing.From Liberty Talkies, the flyover will branch out towards the NIT Building and extend up to LIC Square. It will then pass beneath the Metro viaduct, curve through Kasturchand Park, and head towards RBI Square before finally landing just after the petrol pump at RBI Square. Officials say this exit point will allow smoother traffic movement. The total length of the realigned flyover will be about 875 metres.A key concern during the redesigning plan was Kasturchand Park, a notified heritage precinct. MahaMetro officials said minimum land inside the park will be used. "Only three pillars will be erected on the park land, while the flyover will pass overhead for a distance of around 270 metres. The structure will maintain a headroom of six metres, ensuring that ground-level movement, utilities and public use of the park remain unaffected," a senior MahaMetro official said, adding that the flyover will be high enough to allow uninterrupted use of the open space below.According to officials, the redesigned flyover will maintain a ground-to-deck height of around 5 to 5.5 metres, while a minimum clearance of about 4 metres will be maintained between the flyover and the Metro viaduct above. The actual vertical height is roughly 12.5 metres between the Metro base and ground level. Officials also said the revised alignment would require an overall height of nearly 10 metres, with a 2.5-metre steel girder span proposed across LIC Square to negotiate the tight corridor beneath the Metro structure. Officials said several alternatives were examined before finalising the current alignment, which was found to be the most technically feasible and least intrusive option. The redesign was cleared after multiple rounds of technical evaluation. Once completed, the redesigned flyover is expected to significantly improve traffic flow from Mankapur towards Sadar and RBI Square, a stretch that witnesses heavy vehicular movement throughout the day.