A new flyover for Colombo at a cost of Rs. 3.2 billion

Construction work on the 'Baladaksha Mawatha' flyover in Colombo has been completed and it was vested with the public today (19) under the patronage of the Minister of Transport, Highways and Urban Development, Mr. Bimal Ratnayake. The 'Baladaksha Mawatha' flyover was constructed as the third flyover in the flyover project planned to alleviate traffic congestion in and around Colombo city.

Constructed to allow travel only from Galle Face towards Kompannaweediya Chittampalam A. Gardiner Mawatha, its length is 340 meters and its width is 11 meters. This flyover was constructed under the financial provisions of the Government of Sri Lanka, with the Road Development Authority as the employer, in parallel with the sustainable road development program launched by the Ministry of Transport, Highways and Urban Development.

Further commenting, Minister Bimal Ratnayake stated, "Due to the presence of very busy business establishments, the Presidential Secretariat, and a large number of hotels in this area of Colombo city, this location was prone to significant traffic congestion. To remedy this traffic congestion, plans were made a few years ago to construct three flyovers. Work on two of these flyovers has been completed. This flyover was planned to be completed in 2022. However, due to the economic crisis and other reasons, the construction of this bridge was delayed for a long time. As a result of the field inspection we conducted with the Inspector General of Police, we were able to find quick solutions to the issues related to police official residences and accelerate the construction. Due to the construction delay, an additional one billion rupees had to be spent on the flyover that was supposed to be built three years ago for 2,700 million rupees. The completion of this flyover's construction is a great convenience and benefit to the public. I extend my gratitude to the Police Department and the Road Development Authority for their cooperation in expediting the completion of this construction."