The Union ministry of road transport and highways has sanctioned the construction of a new rail overbridge in Margao, near Shree Damodar Vidyalaya High School and Higher Secondary School, Comba, at a cost of Rs 99 crore.
Once the project is ready, it is expected to ease the vehicular congestion in Margao to a great extent.At present, whenever trains pass by the school, the level crossing at Comba is closed for vehicles and the traffic is diverted through a subway at Comba. When the new rail overbridge is constructed, the level crossing is likely to be permanently shut.
In the past, this crossing has proved to be dangerous, with some pedestrians being killed as they crossed over.
Now, as the railway track-doubling work is on, the frequency of trains on the route is expected to increase. Besides, the authorities’ intention to shut down the Comba level crossing has made it essential to complete the construction of the road and the overbridge.
However, another proposal for Margao made by the state has not yet been accepted by the Centre. State PWD officials had proposed the construction of a missing link of the ring road connecting the powerhouse junction to the Colva circle via Margao. This missing link is around 300m away from Shree Damodar School and is expected to cost Rs 95.8 crore.
The Margao ring road, connecting the Colva road and the powerhouse circle, was partially constructed and commissioned for traffic in 2018. This project was later embroiled in litigation because of the opposition from some locals whose houses would be demolished. This led to the stretch from the Colva road to the Fomento headquarters being completed, while the rest has remained incomplete.