President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has instructed relevant officials to expedite the construction of the Central Expressway and other expressways.
He has also proposed extending the Marine Drive up to Panadura.
The President issued these instructions during a meeting with officials of Ministry of Roads and Highways held at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday (14).
He said that once the expressway from Kadawatha to Dambulla is completed, access to the Northern, Eastern and Western Provinces will be convenient.
The objective of the initiative is to provide safer and faster travel facilities to the public and also create an economic corridor, the President’s Office said.
Construction of the 76-km long road from Ingiriya to Ratnapura will also be expedited. Accelerating the construction of the tunnel road in Kandy will resolve the traffic congestion in the area.
“The construction of partially completed roads and bridges should be fully completed without delay and rural road network should also be developed simultaneously,” President Rajapaksa said.
The President also instructed officials to find immediate solutions to ease the traffic congestion in the morning along the Galle Road, Kaduwela, Highlevel Road and Piliyandala roads toward Colombo.
Flyovers and tunnel passways will be constructed at identified locations where traffic congestion is heavy. The possibility of constructing a road from Wanathamulla to Battaramulla should be explored, he said. This will be a solution to the traffic congestion in Borella and Rajagiriya.
The President also highlighted the importance of extending Marine Drive parallel to the Gall Road up to Panadura.
The President advised the relevant Minister and others to secure the assistance of local engineers in all construction activities.
Minister Johnson Fernando, State Minister Lohan Ratwatte, Secretary to the President Dr. P. B. Jayasundara, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance S. Attygalle, Secretary to the Ministry of Highways R. W. R. Pemasiri and several other officials were present at the discussion.