The Butibori flyover was finally reopened for vehicular traffic on Saturday, nearly five months after it was shut due to damage to its piers. According to sources, police officials expedited the reopening to prevent traffic congestion during Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Nagpur the same day.
National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) officials reviewed the load testing report submitted by the contractor and approved the reopening of the flyover. The reopening of the Butibori flyover is expected to ease the traffic snarls that had troubled commuters for months and bring much-needed relief to local traders whose businesses were affected by the closure.
Since Butibori square sees massive movement of heavy vehicles, the flyover was a boon for the surface traffic. Long distance travellers especially used to stop by at the square shops for snacks and tea. But ever since the damage to piers, the traffic below was thrown out of gear. Traffic jams became a daily feature till Nagpur Rural Police devised a way, diverting the traffic to avoid criss-cross movement at the square. This move on part of the Police Department brought a sense of discipline to the traffic movement. But still the bigde tour during peak times was frustrating for the big vehicles, as it increased consumption of fuel, which in turn meant increased spending on cargo movement.
Post detection of cracks on December 24, 2024, the Butibori flyover was closed for traffic. Though the piers on only one end, on the deck slab of Butibori-Chandrapur side, were damaged, still as a precaution, the entire flyover was out of bounds for traffic. Since the bridge became structurally weak, the authorities put up barricades on either end to ensure no vehicle passes through the fly-over.
To understand what caused the cracks in the Butibori flyover’s piers, the NHAI brought in experts from VNIT and the Civil Engineering Department. The team visited the site, took samples, and conducted a detailed study before submitting its report to the highway authority. Since the flyover was still under the defect liability period, the contractor was held responsible for the repairs. Until the work was completed, scaffolding was put up to safely support the structure.
The repair work involved strengthening the piers by adding extra reinforced bars. This step has not only fixed the damage but also improved the flyover’s load-bearing capacity, ensuring such problems don’t happen again in the future.
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