**Executive Summary**
This document presents the Indian Ministry of Railways' response to Unstarred Question No. 533 in Lok Sabha, concerning the status of Road Over Bridge (ROB) projects in Kerala as of December 3, 2025. It provides details on sanctioned and ongoing ROB/RUB projects, their funding, progress, and any delays. The document also outlines measures taken to expedite these projects.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **General:**
* Sanctioning and execution of ROB/RUB projects is a continuous process on Indian Railways.
* These projects are prioritized based on their impact on safety, train operations, and road users.
* **Construction Numbers:**
* From 2004-14, 4,148 ROBs/RUBs were constructed.
* From 2014-25 (Oct'25), 13,653 ROBs/RUBs were constructed, including 120 in Kerala.
* 2 ROBs/RUBs have been constructed in Kerala during the financial year 2025-26 (up to Oct'25).
* **Current Status in Kerala (as of 01.11.2025):**
* 127 ROBs are sanctioned across railways tracks in Thiruvananthapuram, Madurai, and Palakkad Divisions, at various stages of planning and execution.
* 106 works are sanctioned on a cost-sharing basis, and 21 are 100% Railways cost.
* **Reasons for Delay (Affecting 105 ROBs):**
* Delay in Land Acquisition by the State Government: 37 ROBs
* Finalization of Alignment by the State Government: 63 ROBs
* Law and order/Public Protest/Court cases: 2 ROBs
* Agency yet to be fixed: 3 ROBs
* **Factors Affecting Completion:**
* Cooperation of State Governments for LC closure.
* Fixing approach alignment.
* Approval of General Arrangement Drawing (GAD).
* Land acquisition, removal of encroachment, shifting of utilities, statutory clearances, law and order, and climatic conditions.
* **Measures to Expedite ROB/RUB Works:**
* Joint survey with concerned State Government/Road Owning Authority before finalizing GAD.
* Periodic meetings between Railway & State Government officials.
* Standardization of superstructure drawings for expeditious planning.
* Planning ROB/RUB works to be executed on a single entity basis by Railway wherever possible.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholder:** State Government of Kerala
**Impact**
The State Government is significantly impacted, as the document highlights delays in land acquisition and alignment finalization as primary reasons for ROB project delays. This reflects on the State Government's efficiency and cooperation in facilitating these projects.
**Action Required**
The State Government needs to expedite land acquisition and finalize alignments for pending ROB projects. It should also cooperate with the Railways in giving consent for closure of LC, removal of encroachment, shifting of utilities, obtaining statutory clearances and resolving law and order issues to ensure timely completion.
**Stakeholder:** Road Users & General Public in Kerala
**Impact**
Road users are impacted by the delays in ROB construction, potentially leading to continued safety concerns and traffic congestion.
**Action Required**
No direct action is required from road users, but public awareness campaigns could be conducted to inform them about project timelines and potential disruptions during construction.
**Stakeholder:** Indian Railways
**Impact**
Indian Railways is impacted as it aims to complete these projects to improve safety and mobility in train operations. It needs to ensure cost-effective execution and implement measures to expedite project progress.
**Action Required**
Indian Railways needs to continue taking measures to expedite the progress of ROB/RUB works, including conducting joint surveys, holding periodic meetings with the State Government, standardizing superstructure drawings, and executing works on a single entity basis wherever possible.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Railways: The primary ministry responsible for the Road Over Bridges (ROB) and Road Under Bridges (RUB) projects discussed in the document.
Road Over Bridge (ROB): The main subject of the document, concerning the status, construction, funding, and delays of ROB projects.
Kerala: The Indian state where the ROB projects are located and to which the document's scope is limited.
Indian Railways: The agency executing and funding the ROB/RUB projects.
General Arrangement Drawing (GAD): Important document for the project's execution
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.533
TO BE ANSWERED ON 03.12.2025
STATUS OF ROAD OVER BRIDGES (ROBS) PROJECTS IN KERALA
533. SHRI KODIKUNNIL SURESH:
Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:
(a) the details of all Road Over Bridge (ROB) construction projects
sanctioned and ongoing in the State of Kerala including their
location, division and implementing agency;
(b) the funding pattern adopted for each project indicating whether it is
100 per cent funded by the Railways or implemented on a cost-
sharing basis with the State Government or other agencies;
(c) the status and stage of progress of each ROB project falling under
Thiruvananthapuram, Madurai and Palakkad Divisions;
(d) the target dates of completion and reasons for delay, if any; and
(e) whether the Government has any plan to expedite pending ROB
projects in Kerala to ensure public safety and traffic decongestion
and if so, the details thereof?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND
ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)
(a) to (e) : Sanctioning and execution of works of Road Over Bridges/
Road Under Bridges (ROBs/RUBs) is a continuous and ongoing process on
Indian Railways. Such works are prioritized and taken up on the basis of
its impact on safety and mobility in train operations and impact on road
users.Nos. of ROBs/ RUBs constructed on Indian Railways during the
period 2004-14 vis a vis 2014-25 (Oct’25) is as under:
Period ROBs/ RUBs constructed
2004-14 4,148 Nos.
2014-25 13,653 Nos. (including 120 Nos. in the State of
(Oct’25) Kerala)
During current financial year 2025-26 (up to Oct’25), 02 Nos. of
ROBs/RUBs have been constructed in the State of Kerala.
As on 01.11.2025, 127 Road Over Bridges (ROBs) across railways
tracks have been sanctioned in Thiruvananthapuram, Madurai and
Palakkad Divisions in the State of Kerala which are at various stages of
planning and execution. Out of these works, 106 works are sanctioned
on cost sharing basis and 21 Nos. works are on 100% Railways cost.
105 Nos. ROBs are delayed on account of the State Govt. The
details are as under:
S.No. Reason ROBs (in No.)
1. Delay in Land Acquisition by State Govt. 37
2. Finalization of Alignment by State Govt. 63
3. Law & order/ Public Protest/Court cases etc. 2
4. Agency yet to be fixed 3
Completion & commissioning of ROB/RUB works depends on various
factors like cooperation of State Governments in giving consent for
closure of LC, fixing of approach alignment, approval of General
Arrangement Drawing (GAD), land acquisition, removal of encroachment,
shifting of infringing utilities, statutory clearances from various
authorities, law and order situation in the area of project / work sites,
duration of working season in a year for the particular project / area dueto climatic conditions etc. All these factors affect the completion time of
the projects / works.
Railways have taken following measures to expedite the progress of
ROB/RUB works:
(i) Joint survey with concerned State Govt./Road Owning Authority is
done before finalizing the General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) to
ensure smooth execution.
(ii) Periodic meetings of Railway & State Government officials are done
to resolve various issues related to ROB/RUB works.
(iii) Standardization of superstructure drawings for various combinations
of span, skewness and width of road on Railway portion has been
done to avoid delays during the design approval. This has been issued
in the form of compendium, which can be directly adopted for Road
Over Bridge across Railway lines for expeditious planning.
(iv) ROB/RUB works are planned to be executed on a single entity basis
by Railway wherever possible. In case any Road Owning
authority/State Govt. wants, then Railway may permit them to execute
the work on a single entity basis.
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