Corporation builds platform shops under Palakkarai road over bridge in Tiruchi

Tiruchi Corporation builds platform shops under Palakkarai Road over bridge to regulate street vendors and ease traffic congestion.

Tiruchi Corporation has built platform shops in the vacant space under the Palakkarai Road over bridge (RoB) in an attempt to regulate street vendors and overcome traffic congestion caused by them in the locality.

At present, the roadside shops encroach upon the pedestrian platforms and carriageways near Heber Road, hindering vehicular movement and posing a threat to motorists. As a solution, the civic body has developed 50 platform shops utilising about 330 feet of the space under the bridge for vegetable and fruit vendors.

The initiative aims to address traffic congestion caused by street vendors who set up pushcarts and stalls on the narrow roads in the locality as well as provide an alternative location for the vendors.

A sum of ₹25 lakh has been sanctioned by the Corporation for developing the space under the Bheema Nagar arm of the Palakkarai bridge. “We will relocate the street vendors from Heber Road to the stalls developed below the bridge. The vacant space was used as junkyard by residents and commercial establishments. Now, it will be utilised to prevent traffic snarls in the area,” said a senior Corporation official.

Construction work is underway to create side walls that partition the space. The civic body expects to relocate the vendors within this month, the official added.

Meanwhile, the civic body has decided to replicate the model in other vacant spaces under the bridges in the city.

Officials say they would consider the demands from the public to utilise the space below the Junction RoB and Crawford bridge for an artificial turf to play cricket, football and kabaddi.