Mangaluru: The wait for residents of South Mangaluru to have an unhindered commute towards Thokkottu and Kerala is likely to get longer as the approach road to National Highway 66 from the Jeppu-Kudpady railway underbridge, on which work has been completed, is mired in controversies.

The underbridge is located on Kannur-Mangaluru-Mumbai railway line where the road from Marnamikatte passes through Kudpady and is proposed to be extended to NH 66 at Jeppinamogaru.

While the existing road from Marnamikatte till the underbridge is proposed to be widened by acquiring adjacent property by Mangaluru City Corporation, a kutcha road has to be upgraded from the underbridge till the NH, which also requires acquisition of certain land. The Southern Railway has completed work on the underbridge with the city corporation depositing with the Railways RS4.5 crore towards construction cost.

Upon commissioning, the underbridge would provide relief to residents of the locality, who now have to motor via Morgan’s Gate and Mahakalipadpu. The level crossing gate at Mahakalipadpu on Kannur-Mangaluru Central Railway line gets closed every 30 minutes for durations ranging from four to seven minutes. Since the road is a thoroughfare for Kerala-bound traffic from South Mangaluru, including the fishing harbour, closure of the gate results in frequent traffic pile-ups. A proposal to build another railway underbridge at Mahakalipadpu is also pending for long without any solution.

Gerald D’Souza, a resident of Kudpady, told that though the Railways had proposed to build the underbridge a decade ago, the city corporation sat upon it. Consequently, the cost has gone up from about Rs.12 lakh Rs. 4.5 crore, he regretted. Even after such a delay, the city corporation is yet to construct the approach road towards Jeppinamogaru, he said.

A senior engineer with the city corporaiton said that no budget provision was made for the approach road during the current financial year even as land have to be acquired to construct the new approach road and the existing Kudpady Road. Connectivity to the NH may not happen immediately, he said.