A two-tier subway system for vehicles and pedestrians will come up at the intersection near Tata Medical Center in New Town’s Action Area I and a pedestrian underpass will be built near the campus of St Xavier’s University in Action Area III, a senior Hidco official said.

Hidco, the government body that builds infrastructure in New Town, has decided to create the subway system and the underpass to streamline traffic and ensure pedestrians cross the road safely.

The official said the upper level of the two-tier subway complex, to be built at the Tata Medical Center intersection of the Major Arterial Road (MAR), will be for cars and two-wheelers.

The lower level will be reserved for pedestrians.

“Heavy vehicles like trucks and buses will not be allowed to use the underpass. They will continue to ply through the MAR,” the official said.

“As sections of the crossings need to be cordoned off, the construction work will be preceded by a detailed topographical mapping and a traffic survey. The topographical survey will map all underground utilities at the two crossings,” the official said.

The traffic survey will be carried out over several weeks. Vehicle movement during the day and night will be recorded as part of the traffic survey.

“After the surveys are over, soil tests will be carried out before the designs of the subway system and the pedestrian underpass are finalised. The drawings have to be vetted by experts,” the official said.

New Town has a two-tier subway complex for vehicles and pedestrians at the Kolkata Gate intersection. The one for vehicles, at 4.2m below the road surface, is 320m-long and 7m-wide. It has four lanes and a divider.

Below it is the pedestrian subway complex, at a depth of 8m.

“We are building subways to decongest crossroads in New Town,” a Hidco engineer said.

The underpass near St Xavier’s University will allow pedestrians to cross the six-lane MAR safely. “Apart from stairs, the underpass will have a set of escalators,” the Hidco official said.

Hidco also has plans to build subway complexes at the Chinar Park crossing, in front of the Smart Connect building and at the Westin Hotel intersection.