Trade and industry in the western districts have appealed to the central and state governments to implement the Karur-Coimbatore Bypass and Eastern Bypass road projects.
Kongoo Global Forum director J. Satish said the projects were conceptualized in 2014 and a detailed project report was prepared after a feasibility study. “If a greenfield road is developed between Karur and Coimbatore, it would be possible to cover a distance of about 120 km in one to one-and-a-half hours,” he said.
Besides, the proposed alignment has dry land in several pockets and once the Karur-Coimbatore bypass is laid, industrial estates could come up on these lands, he said.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had said in an RTI reply last August that the two bypass roads would be developed as a joint project and that a draft DPR was ready and “further DPR studies are in progress.”
The estimated project cost is estimated to be ₹ 7,500 crore. In December last year, it said land acquisition proposals for the four-lane Karur-Coimbatore bypass and the Coimbatore Ring Road had been recommended for approval.
However, in March this year, in another RTI reply, it said that the detailed project report is being prepared and the approval of NHAI’s land acquisition committee is awaited, Mr Satish said.
“This is a project that should be implemented as it will greatly benefit the region. All western districts will benefit from the road,” he said.
He said that in the case of the Eastern Bypass, it would connect all the highway roads passing through Coimbatore thus reducing traffic congestion in the city.