Belagavi Flyover Project Picks Up Pace: Tree Mapping Begins

The city’s first-ever flyover project, envisioned as a long-term solution to rising traffic congestion, is now moving into a more advanced preparatory phase. In a key on-ground development, trees along the crucial stretch between Samrat Ashok Chowk and Kittur Rani Chennamma Circle in the Fort Lake area were recently numbered and mapped. This exercise, carried out jointly by the Public Works Department (PWD) and the Forest Department on Monday (16), is a critical precursor to land acquisition and road widening. The mapping of trees indicates that groundwork for the project is intensifying, and the transition from planning to execution is drawing closer. The proposed flyover, which will be Belagavi’s first, is planned as a 4.5 km elevated corridor designed to streamline traffic across some of the city’s busiest junctions. It will originate from National Highway-48 near Sankam Hotel in Gandhinagar, pass through Ashoka Circle, Sangolli Rayanna (RTO) Circle, and extend up to Kittur Rani Chennamma Circle and will finally end at Chhatrapati Dharmaveer Sambhaji Chowk. From there, it will continue along Dr. Ambedkar Road past KLE Hospital, eventually reconnecting to the National Highway near ICMR. The route overlaps with key internal city stretches, including Samrat Ashok Chowk and Chhatrapati Dharmaveer Sambhaji Chowk, which are currently among the most congested corridors. As per the current plan: Key Structural Details Fresh details emerging from the project outline indicate the scale and engineering complexity involved: A 6,678-metre elevated stretch will be constructed by the Public Works Department, supported on 167 pillars. An additional 1,112-metre segment will be taken up by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), built on 22 pillars. Together, these segments form a major elevated corridor designed to streamline traffic across multiple junctions. The flyover will feature multiple spans supported by a large number of pillars, with different segments likely to be executed by the PWD and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). Rotaries are proposed at major junctions like Ashoka Circle and Chennamma Circle to ensure seamless traffic flow below. Multiple entry and exit ramps are planned, connecting the Central Bus Stand, RTO, Mahantesh Nagar, and Kolhapur Circle. A dedicated service road with a Road Over Bridge (ROB) is also proposed to improve connectivity towards Sambra Airport. The design of the flyover has already received in-principle approval from the District Administration, and the alignment map has been published, marking another important milestone. Based on current progress, if approvals and tendering proceed without delays, construction work could commence within the next 6–12 months. Given the scale and complexity of the project, the construction phase is expected to take around 3 to 4 years. Despite earlier statements suggesting a two-year completion timeline post commencement, experts indicate that a realistic timeframe for a project of this magnitude would extend closer to 3 years, factoring in land acquisition, utility shifting, and phased construction in dense urban zones.