Surat's busiest Ring Road flyover to close for two months

One of the oldest Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar flyover bridge (FOB) popularly known as Ring Road flyover will be closed for vehicular movement from March 9 to May 5 for repair and restoration, Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) announced on Monday.

The FOB passes through the city's busiest textile market area. Hundreds of commuters cross the FOB daily to reach destinations like railway station, New Civil Hospital, collector office, police commissioner office and other important government offices.

Public notification in this regard was issued by the municipal commissioner Banchhanidhi Pani on Monday. It was planned to close the FOB earlier but due to traffic related issues, the decision to close the FOB was postponed.

As an alternate route, SMC has suggested commuters use BRTS canal road between Udhna and Punagam.

For the first two days starting Tuesday, the traffic movement will be studied and issues will be identified. If the traffic movement remains smooth the repair work will begin.

Heavy police deployment will be done on the Ring Road to ensure that the road below the FOB remains clear for traffic movement. Currently, the area below the FOB is used for pay and park while alongside the textile markets almost two lanes are occupied by vehicles carrying textile products. The lanes near buildings are occupied throughout the day for loading and unloading of textile products.

To keep these lanes clear and ensure smooth traffic movement, 60 traffic cops and 60 traffic brigade jawans has been deployed.