The Andhra Pradesh government is yet to focus on dedicated road connectivity from Vizianagaram to the new airport at Bhogapuram on National Highway 16. The government has developed nearly seven roads from Visakhapatnam to the airport, but decided to take up the Vizianagaram roads in the “next phase”.

The Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region Development Authority (VMRDA) has identified the Vizianagaram Ice Factory Junction-Dharmapuri-Chintalavalasa-Bhogapuram stretch as one of the important routes and kept it in the master plan. However, in the absence of funds, the VMRDA has not taken up the road.

The regular route, Vizianagaram-Denkada-Natavalasa-Bhogapuram, sees heavy congestion because of the movement of hundreds of buses of pharmaceutical companies. It is the only route available to travel to Srikakulam from Vizianagaram, and traffic jams are a daily occurrence. It takes at least half an hour to travel from Vizianagaram to Denkada, although the distance is hardly 12 km from the heart of the Fort City.

Air travellers from various places in Odisha and from towns in Andhra Pradesh such as Parvatipuram, Bobbili and Salur will have to use the Vizianagaram-Denkada-Natavalasa-Bhogapuram route. They could also travel via the Raipur-Visakhapatnam highway, but a majority may avoid it because of the longer distance to the airport.

When the media raised the issue, Minister for MSME Kondapalli Srinivas, Information and Public Relations Minister Kolusu Parthasarathy and others said new dedicated roads would be developed from Vizianagaram to the airport region soon. Mr. Srinivas said the government had focused on the Visakhapatnam roads as all air passengers would have to come to Bhogapuram once the existing airport in Visakhapatnam closed.

Published - August 04, 2026 02:23 pm IST