The Sulthan Bathery-Tannirbavi vehicular bridge, being built across Phalguni river, is set to open for vehicular movement by September, said Dakshina Kannada district In-charge Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao in Mangaluru on Friday.

After inspecting the progress of the project, the Minister said the 100-metre-long bow-string girder of the bridge will be placed at a height of 10 metres from the high tide line to facilitate the movement of fishing boats below the bridge as mandated under provisions of National Waterways 43.

The Minister also assured fishermen of dredging the river to allow smooth movement of fishing boats.

The bridge, he said, will support 4,000 families living in Bengre. Currently, residents rely on ferry services to travel swiftly to the city. However, during severe monsoon conditions and at night, these ferry services are unavailable, forcing residents to take a longer route through Kuloor to reach the city.

With this project, the travel time by personal vehicles between the city and Bengre will be reduced by 30 minutes. This bridge will also help ambulances and fire tenders to reach Bengre swiftly.

The road through the new Sulthan Bathery-Tannirbavi bridge will be the second route to reach the Blue Flag Tannirbhavi beach, Mr. Rao said.