Uneven stretches along metro corridor in Kochi remain a safety concern

A tragic accident in which two youths were killed as their car crashed into a Kochi metro pillar near Edappally on Saturday (November 8, 2025) has renewed concerns over accident risks on roads running along the metro corridor.

While there has been no evidence to link the accident with the metro infrastructure, repeated incidents have once again drawn attention to the uneven surface of busy roads in the city running along the metro corridor.

Stretches of key roads, including Sahodaran Ayyappan Road, M.G. Road, and Banerjee Road, are uneven, with their surfaces near the metro pile caps sinking. The difference in height around the pile caps, caused by the gradual settlement of the roads, has made them accident-prone, posing serious risks to two-wheeler riders in particular. While levelling the uneven surfaces remains a necessary safety measure, neither Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) nor the Kochi Corporation has taken any concrete steps to address the issue beyond exchanging a few communications.

The issue had drawn the attention of the authorities last year after a stretch of Sahodaran Ayyappan Road near Elamkulam Junction turned into a danger zone, with frequent accidents claiming several lives. In March 2024, KMRL had milled the raised portions above the pile caps between pillars 814 and 834, offering only a partial solution to the problem. Although the Corporation had requested KMRL to carry out levelling works on other stretches within its limits to prevent further safety risks, the metro authorities have turned down the request, saying periodic maintenance of the roads was not its responsibility.

Citing the case of Sahodaran Ayyappan Road, KMRL had responded to the Corporation’s request by stating that the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), which constructed the first phase of the Kochi Metro, had reconstructed the road and handed it over to the Kochi Corporation in May 2020. The metro agency pointed out that the defect liability period for the reconstruction had ended by May 2021. The KMRL communication clarified that the levelling works on the Elamkulam stretch were carried out purely as an act of goodwill and social commitment, and that it could not be expected to undertake similar works on the remaining stretches.

KMRL, according to sources, reasoned that the entire Sahodaran Ayyappan Road had been undergoing uniform settlement even earlier, apparently due to the nature of the land. This became evident after the surface over the pile caps remained intact, they said. “KMRL hands over roads to the authorities concerned after reconstructing them as part of building metro corridors. It cannot undertake the routine maintenance of roads,” a KMRL source said.

Mayor M. Anilkumar, meanwhile, said the uneven surface had resulted from the metro works. “Someone has to rectify the issue. Now, with the local body elections round the corner, the Corporation cannot take up any work. It will have to be handled by the next Corporation council,” he added.