The Vyttila Junction traffic upgrade in Kochi has entered its final phase, with authorities preparing to divert heavy vehicles through the Vyttila Mobility Hub once the remaining infrastructure work is completed. The Rs 1.50-crore project, funded by the Kerala Road Safety Authority, is intended to introduce a signal-free traffic flow at one of the city’s busiest road intersections.
Thrikkakkara MLA Uma Thomas said the assistant commissioner of police (traffic) and senior civil officials had confirmed that a comprehensive traffic re-routing plan would be implemented immediately after the physical works were completed. The plan includes diverting heavy vehicles, particularly private buses travelling towards Tripunithura and Aroor, through the mobility hub service road.
Three key works are still pending: shifting a water pipeline, relocating an electric post and moving the police aid post. The Kerala Water Authority and the Kerala State Electricity Board have been asked to complete their respective tasks urgently. The police aid post is also listed for relocation as part of the junction redesign.
The junction improvement measures include creating free left turns, reducing the 16-metre roundabout below the flyover to increase carriageway width and removing sections of median edges. These changes are intended to allow buses approaching from the Kundanoor side to enter the mobility hub directly. Zebra crossing lines at the western end of the junction will also be extended.
A meeting involving the Vyttila Mobility Hub Society, the police, the Motor Vehicles Department and other concerned agencies is expected to be convened soon to finalise the arrangements for the new traffic flow. The re-routing plan will therefore depend not only on the completion of the civil and utility works but also on coordination between the agencies managing the junction, public transport and traffic enforcement.
The project was finalised on May 6, 2025, but implementation was delayed for various reasons. Work eventually began two months before the latest report and has now moved into its closing phase. The proposed diversion will place a larger share of bus movement through the mobility hub’s internal road network, making the condition of its entry and exit points important to the functioning of the plan.
Vyttila councillor V P Chandran has called for a new road connecting Vyttila Metro station to Kunnara Park. He said diverting traffic through the hub without an additional connection could create congestion at the existing hub exit near Vyttila temple. According to Chandran, KMRL owns land up to Kunnara Park and a road could be built beneath the Metro pillars without further land acquisition.
The junction changes are being proposed as the state government has given in-principle approval for a local area plan for Vyttila. The broader proposals include redeveloping the mobility hub, constructing a bus station on the northern side near the flyover, creating an urban canopy beneath the flyover and developing a waterfront urban park near Kaniyampuzha.
The immediate next step is the completion of the pipeline, electric post and police aid post relocations, followed by the inter-agency meeting and implementation of the traffic diversion plan.
