Onam rush chokes Kazhakkoottam-Kaniyapuram NH stretch; techies hit hardest by daily gridlock

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With Onam shopping and festive travel peaking, the Kazhakkoottam-Kaniyapuram stretch of National Highway 66 is witnessing heavy traffic congestion, especially during peak hours. The choked corridor, which serves as a major entry and exit point to the state capital, has turned into a bottleneck for motorists, IT employees, and local residents. The NH development work at Kaniyapuram and the dilapidated service road are the major reasons for the worsening traffic situation. Those working at Technopark are among the worst hit by the harrowing traffic. It takes a minimum of 30 minutes to cover the Kaniyapuram-Kazhakkoottam stretch, which is barely three kilometres long, said Vineeth Chandran, a techie. Reaching the campus on time has become a real challenge for many techies. Some try short cuts to avoid the rush, but it is not feasible for everyone. With most companies having ended work-from-home options, commuting through this jammed corridor has become a daily struggle. Many feel that if traffic woes are not addressed soon, Thiruvananthapurams IT hub risks turning into another Bengaluru. At times, it takes 30 minutes to cover just 100 metres between Infosys and Akkulam. The entire Technopark stretch remains clogged. The situation calls for an elevated corridor or some long-term solution. I live in Vazhuthacaud and it takes me at least an hour to reach home, which is only 15 km away, said Rohith J, another techie. He said it is high time the government seriously considered implementing the metro project, which has been pending for years, without further delay. Motorists also complained that the absence of traffic wardens and poorly planned signals along the Kazhakkoottam corridor compound the chaos. If there is no traffic police officer on duty, the congestion becomes unbearable at many junctions. And the existing signals are too confusing, said Jithu V M, another IT professional. Traffic authorities said they are deploying additional personnel to manage the heavy rush on the Kazhakkoottam stretch. Construction activities are on and our resources are limited. However, we are providing additional officers to regulate traffic as best as we can, an officer said.