Kochi: Two-way traffic through South India’s longest six lane tunnel was opened at Kuthiran in Thrissur on Thursday.
This will help the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to complete the work of the second tunnel planned for commissioning next year.
Clearing of earth from the NH 544 conventional road to Palakkad will begin only after ensuring smooth flow of traffic for at least a few days through the one opened today.
Different departments will conduct inspections to ensure flawless performance of the lane before moving to the next work of excavating earth from the normal road.
The one way traffic through the tunnel was opened by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on July 31.
The over 954 metre tunnel not only helps to reduce the distance from Thrissur to Palakkad by three kilometres, but also helps ease traffic bottlenecks through the ghat pass which used to create roadblocks for long hours.
It takes just about one to two minutes to travel through the tunnel. Vehicles running out of fuel inside the tunnel will be fined heavily towards the logistics expenses.
There are 500 lights, ten cameras, air exhaust facility, 24 hours control room among others.
Work on the tunnel began in 2016.
