Southern Expressway ready by 2011
Shirajiv SIRIMANE
A part of the expressway under construction. (Source STDP)
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The first stage of the Colombo - Matara Expressway (up to Galle) will
be completed in July 2010 and the total project would be ready by 2011.
Total length of the expressway would be 126 kilometres, which is 34
kms less than the existing Colombo - Matara highway.
The expressway costing Rs. 84 billion is Sri Lanka’s biggest
development project in history and is also the first access controlled
expressway (EW) in the country.
Design speed of the project starting from Kottawa on Highlevel road
and ending at Godagama in Matara is 120 kilometres per hour.
“One of the biggest advantages of the project is that a motorist
would be able to reach Matara in just one hour and twenty minutes and
Galle in one hour,” said Project Director, Southern Transport
Development Project (STDP), S. Meihandan.
The EW is a four lane dual carriageway with eleven interchanges with
toll gates and one rest area in Bentota with a 1.5m wide centre median
with a cable barrier.
The access to the expressway would be from Kottawa on High Level road
and from Kahathuduwa, Gelanigama, Dodangoda, Welipenna,
Kurundugahahetekma, Nayapamula, Pinnaduwa, Deegoda, Weligama and
Godagama on Matara Akuressa road.
There would be 153 underpasses and 27 overpasses as well. The EW
would also be linked to the Colombo - Katunayake EW and the proposed
Colombo - Kandy EW.
He said the EW was originally planned to be a two lane expressway and
it was converted to a four lane anticipating the future demand. “We
estimate that the Southern expressway would be sufficient to meet the
demand for another 25 years.
There is provision for two additional lanes for the future,” he
added.
Two Special ambulances and a fire brigade would be assigned for the
Expressway in case of an emergency.
Commenting on the proposed ‘toll’ (TM) he said that the STDP, hopes
to charge a toll of Rs. 3 per kilometer from Cars, Rs. 6 from Vans, Rs.
9 from Buses and Lorries and Rs. 12 from Container Trucks.
A toll card is also planned for regular users. No motor bikes or
three wheelers would be allowed in the EW.
Japan International Co-operation Agency, (JICA) Asian Development
Bank (ADB) and the government would fund the project.
The main objective of the project is to assist the development of
economic activities of the Southern Province by encouraging growth in
industries such as tourism, fisheries and agriculture.
Another advantage would be the reduction of fatal and non-fatal
accidents (Most of the present victims are pedestrians and cyclists) in
the A2 highway. Security against potential tsunami impacts between North
and South on the Western Coast has also been considered. Land
acquisition and resettlement has been substantially completed. Post
resettlement activities such as income restoration, home gardening
development and environmental monitoring are in progress.
He said that nearly 1340 families were displaced and Rs. 4.57 Billion
had been paid as compensation so far.
Commenting on new technology the project director said that
application of Compact Vacuum Consolidation and heavy tamping methods to
treat soft soil areas were introduced. |