Road, flyover construction picks up pace
View(s):By Bandula Sirimanna
Ahead of the presidential elections the Government has earmarked for the completion and opening of roads, bridges and highway construction projects while expediting key infrastructure development work suspended due to the economic downturn in 2020-2021.
Transport and Highways Ministry Secretary Eng. Ranjith Ganganath Rubasinghe said that despite the economic crisis the country has faced, the government has allocated Rs.90 billion over the past two years solely for road development projects initiated before 2022. Of this amount, Rs.300 billion has been spent on contractors, and Rs.90 billion has been used for debt payments.
The successful debt restructuring programme has allowed the Ministry of Highways to restart several stalled projects, particularly the Central Expressway’s Phase 1.
Discussions have also commenced for the early start of Phases 2 and 3 of the Central Expressway and the Ruwanpura Expressway project, with financial investments under negotiation. Public-private partnerships are expected to fund these projects, he disclosed.
The second phase of the flyover over the railway line connecting Kompannavidiya, Justice Akbar Mawatha, and Uttarananda Mawatha has been completed and was opened on Thursday.
Additionally, the Kohuwala flyover is scheduled to open next week, and the harbour entrance runway work is expected to finish by early September. Thousands of projects are being executed nationwide under the RDA, including the completion of 320 km of rural roads under a 1,000 km rural roads project, with the remaining roads set to be completed in August.
In the first four months of 2024, Rs. 78,910 million was spent on roads and bridges, slightly less than the same period in 2023, finance ministry data shows.
The government prioritised maintaining the existing road network and completing critical projects, with Rs. 17,147 million spent on national and rural road development, including Rs. 1,772 million for the Integrated Road Investment Programme (i-Road) and Rs. 6,419 million for developing 100,000 km of alternative roads.
Road maintenance activities received Rs. 4,689 million, while expressway development expenditure was Rs. 15,874 million, mainly for the Central Expressway Development Project.
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