Kathmandu underpasses move forward as tunnel road plans stall

Construction of underpasses at Kathmandu Valley's Satdobato and Ekantakuna intersections is set to begin in the upcoming fiscal year, following a government allocation of Rs124.6 million. These projects, estimated to cost around Rs1.5 billion in total, aim to alleviate chronic traffic congestion.

Feasibility studies for both underpasses are complete, marking progress after years of delays. The government initially planned overpasses or flyovers for these busy intersections in the fiscal year 2022-23 budget, but detailed studies led to the decision to build underpasses, similar to the existing Kalanki underpass. The Satdobato underpass will be approximately 540 meters long, while the Ekantakuna underpass will be around 300 meters.

“

The budget allocated for the Gwarko overpass is only for minor maintenance work, amounting to Rs2 million. We will proceed with calling for tenders for the Satdobato and Ekantakuna underpasses. Together, the projects are expected to cost around Rs1.5 billion.

Rajesh Prasad Paudel, director of the Quality Research and Development Centre under the Department of Roads, stated that construction will commence in the next fiscal year, with tenders to be called soon. He noted that lessons learned from the Gwarko overpass construction will be applied to minimize traffic disruption. The department will seek multi-year funding approval as the projects cannot be completed within a single fiscal year. Meanwhile, preliminary studies for about two dozen tunnel roads have been conducted, but only two, the Nagdhunga-Sisnekhola Tunnelway and the Siddhababa Tunnelway, are currently under construction.

“

We learned valuable lessons from the construction of the Gwarko overpass. This time, all necessary preparations will be completed before awarding the contract. We will coordinate with all concerned agencies and adopt appropriate measures to ensure traffic movement is not severely affected.