No safe crossings on Abdullapurmet highway put pedestrians at risk

Residents of Abdullapurmet are demanding safe pedestrian crossings on the busy National Highway, citing risks to students and locals. With schools, hostels, and colonies on both sides, residents want a foot-over-bridge to prevent accidents and fatalities.

Hyderabad: Absence of any safe tracks for crossing the National Highway at Abdullapurmet in Ranga Reddy district is giving jitters to the pedestrians.

The highway, once passing through agricultural fields and tall palm trees, now runs through the colonies that have come up in recent years on the Vijayawada Highway. There are more than a dozen secondary schools, higher and technical institutions located on both sides of the road.

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Also, there are more than 100 hostels in the Abdullapurmet offering accommodation to the students and working professionals. In the morning hours, hundreds of students can be seen struggling to safely cross the busy roads and avoid the speeding vehicles.

“Trucks and cars just zoom on the road, caring little for the safety of the pedestrians. It is the same situation in the afternoon,” complained Shiva Raj, a parent and a local resident of Abdullapurmet.

There are more than 20 colonies on either side of the Abdullapurmet road. “Crossing the road is no less than an ordeal for women and children. There are no traffic policemen on the road to help the people,” alleged K Manoj, a local resident.

The residents have asked the State government and the Union government to immediately erect a foot-over-bridge after conducting a study on the road. The traffic volume is high during the festival season as families from Hyderabad head to their native places in Andhra Pradesh for the celebrations.

“The sooner the FoBs are installed, the better it will be for the residents. There have been many pedestrian deaths reported during the night on the road when vehicles go at a high speed,” said Srinivas, a local bike mechanic.