Chief minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday inaugurated the much awaited Bailey Road road over bridge (ROB) located at Rukunpura near new Pataliputra station. Though he made no public speech on the occasion, he expressed satisfaction over the completion of the ROB at a time when the Bailey Road has been coping with enormous rush of traffic from Saguna Mor in Danapur to Dak Bungalow in Patna. Road construction department (RCD) minister Nand Kishore Yadav presided over the function.
With the inauguration of this ROB, Patna has become a state capital having the maximum number of road over bridges (ROBs). There are altogether seven ROBs, including two old ones functioning in the state capital, to cope with the huge rush of traffic in the town.
According to sources, this is the first major ROB on the Bailey Road which is likely to give much relief to people after commissioning of new Pataliputra station and the rail-cum-road bridge over the Ganga at Digha in December 2012. Work on this ROB has been completed at a cost of Rs 80 crore. The Pataliputra station and the ROB are part of the mega Ganga bridge project. The present ROB has been constructed with the latest technology by the railways, sources said.
According to an ECR official, this ROB has four-lane facilities providing connectivity to people from both east and west ends of the town. Its length is about one km, including the alignment portion of the bridge. The highlight of this ROB is that it has architectural beauty with full quality control over materials used for the construction work. Special care has been taken as it crosses over the old canal located on the Bailey Road, he said.
Keeping in mind the fact that railway tracks are being laid connecting to Pataliputra station right from Phulwari FCI godown, this ROB would now provide uninterrupted traffic flow over the bridge while passenger trains would run on the tracks just underneath the ROB towards both east (Phulwari) and west (Danapur) ends. Danapur station will thus gain the status of junction station after connecting it directly to Pataliputra station, an ECR official said.
The railways has provided enough space for the expansion of the bridge, particularly lane over it. It is a strongly built bridge with all facilities available on it, including lights and better alignments for smooth traffic flow. As the ROB is connecting NH-91, the railways has taken all possible care to give it shape and design to cope with huge traffic rush in future, an ECR official said, adding it would be a rare sight to watch beauty of the ROB during night.
ECR GM K K Srivastava, who was present on the occasion, said that the ROB would prove to be a boon for the people living in Danapur and Jagdeopath area. The railways has finally handed over the ROB to the state government, he said. RCD principal secretary Pratyaya Amrit, Patna commissioner K P Ramaiah and officials of ECR, Hajipur, were also present.
Later, the CM along with officials went to see the Bihar Centenary Column at Saguna More and gave directions to make it more attractive.
