VPT plans Rs. 500-cr road infrastructure

The Visakhapatnam Port Trust (VPT) has recently decided to build a major road project to provide connectivity between Ayyappa junction and Sabbavaram in the city at an investment worth Rs. 500-cr for which the work on the DPR by the NHAI is currently underway and will be ready shortly. Prior to this, the VPT bagged two railway connectivity projects under the Union government's flagship-Sagarmala programs. It involves elevated corridors in certain stretches ensuring that traffic originating from the port will bypass the city roads and that the port connectivity road will be extended to provide a road from Ayyappa junction to Sabbavaram. The report will be submitted to the Union Shipping Ministry for funding under the Sagarmala programs for final approval, said official sources, adding that modalities for funding the project will be worked out once the DPR is prepared. VPT has expanded its capacity to nearly 100 million tons and expects a steady increase in cargo traffic in the next 4-5 years.