Now Reading: Old Jajmau bridge closure from Sept 1 for three months
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Old Jajmau bridge closure from Sept 1 for three months
The old Jajmau Ganga bridge on the Lucknow-Kanpur route will be closed for three months from September 1 for bearing replacement work by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). The nearly 730-metre-long bridge, built in the 1970s, carries traffic from Lucknow towards Kanpur. The parallel bridge constructed in 2012 under the Golden Quadrilateral Project, which carries traffic towards Lucknow, will remain open.
The bearing replacement contract was awarded to Maharashtra-based Rehabilitation Engineering for Rs 5.60 crore, with a completion deadline of December 12. NHAI has prepared a diversion plan and sent letters to the district magistrates and police chiefs of Kanpur, Unnao and Lucknow for traffic management. Heavy vehicles will be encouraged to use alternative routes including the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, Ganga Expressway, and several national highways.
Transporters have sought more clarity on the plan, saying the diversion routes must be assessed for heavy commercial traffic. Raju Aneja, president of the Lucknow Transport Nagar Association, said the industry should be involved in monitoring the plan to avoid higher fuel and maintenance costs. Vehicles travelling towards Hamirpur and Banda will have to cover around 75 km extra, while those from Unnao to Etawah will travel about 30 km more.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The closure of a key bridge built over 50 years ago highlights the infrastructure maintenance backlog on major arterial routes in Uttar Pradesh. The Ganga bridge carries traffic from Lucknow to Kanpur, a corridor vital for freight movement between eastern and western UP. The 75 km detour for vehicles headed to Hamirpur and Banda will increase logistics costs, which transporters warn will be passed on to consumers. NHAI's decision to delay the closure until after the Sawan month suggests some sensitivity to religious travel, but the three-month window overlaps with the post-monsoon peak movement of agricultural produce. The real test will be whether the parallel bridge built in 2012 can handle the additional load without developing its own stress points. Watch for reports on congestion on alternative routes, especially NH-27 and the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, in the first two weeks of September.
Source: hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Methodology and corrections.
