While Punekars continue to struggle with daily traffic jams, Union Road and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari allegedly dropped his planned site visit on Monday for the proposed tunnel project—meant as an alternative to the two congested roads he was supposed to travel—so as not to add to the inconvenience of commuters already stuck in traffic.
He instead held talks with Kasba MLA Hemant Rasane and officials instead of the site visit. He did visit the junction of the two roads and understood the need for tunnels.
Although all over social media it is being said that he had to drop his plan as he was stuck in traffic, while speaking with The Free Press Journal, Hemant Rasane said that the media got it wrong and Gadkari cancelled the route review to avoid inconvenience for people already in traffic due to his convoy.
He also said that Gadkari got ready to do the review after his request during his already planned visit and he just avoided the 200-metre road.
Four-lane underground tunnel
To ease traffic congestion in central Pune, a four-lane underground tunnel has been proposed as an alternative to Shivaji Road and Bajirao Road. The planned route will connect Shaniwarwada to Swargate and Sarasbaug to Shaniwarwada. The total length of the two tunnels will be approximately 2.5 kilometers.
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