Cuttack: Commuters travelling to or returning from Bhubaneswar will have their travel time drastically cut with the under-construction bridge over the Mahanadi river nearing completion.

The bridge, which authorities said will be open to traffic shortly, will connect the city to NH-55.

The three-lane bridge will also ease traffic congestion on NH-16 - the only connecting link between Sambalpur, Angul and Dhenkanal and the twin cities.

Estimates suggest that more than 30,000 vehicles ply on the NH-55 through NH-16 via Cuttack towards the south. The works department is constructing the bridge across from Chahata on the Ring Road in the north to Nuapatana near Choudwar.

An official of the department's roads and building division said work on the 2.58km bridge was almost complete and would shortly be ready for the public. Roads and building (Cuttack division) executive engineer M.R. Khan said: "Construction is complete, but it will take some more time to put finishing touches."

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik had laid the foundation stone of the bridge in December 2013. But construction began with assistance from the National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development after a state cabinet approval in September 2015.

Built for Rs 157 crore, the bridge has a 10.50m carriageway and includes a 6ft-wide footpath for pedestrians and cycles on both sides.

"The bridge will reduce the distance between Cuttack and Dhenkanal, Angul and Sambalpur districts and ensure better connectivity from Cuttack to Choudwar, Athagarh and Dhabaleswar," Khan said.

There is no direct road connectivity from Cuttack to the Shiva Temple at Dhabaleswar at present.

The bridge will reduce the distance between Dhenkanal and Bhubaneswar by around 22km. Bhubaneswar-bound vehicles from Dhenkanal on NH-55 would no longer need to travel via Manguli Chhak to take the NH-6 route, but can cross the bridge from Nuapatna to Markatnagar and move towards Barang en route the Netaji Setu to reach the national highway at Pithapalli.

Similarly, vehicles to Sambalpur from Berhampur would no longer have to pass through Bhubaneswar and Maguli Chhak.