Plans to close the busy Chandranagar Junction on the Walayar-Vadakkanchery National Highway in Palakkad to facilitate flyover construction have triggered widespread anxiety among motorists. The proposed traffic diversion is expected to funnel a massive volume of cargo and passenger vehicles through the already choked Kadankod underpass, raising fears of severe gridlock across the local network.

The construction firm's proposal is currently under review by the district administration. Under the new plan, vehicles arriving from the direction of Coimbatore heading towards Kalmandapam and the Kozhikode Bypass will no longer be allowed to turn right under the flyover at Chandranagar Junction. Instead, they will be forced to climb over the Chandranagar flyover, merge onto the service road before the Kadankod flyover, make a U-turn at Kadankod Junction, and travel back via the service road past the Cosmopolitan Club to reach Chandranagar again. Furthermore, vehicles coming from the Pirivusala service road will also be forced onto the Chandranagar flyover rather than crossing directly.

Local residents and transport operators warn that Kadankod Junction is already a major bottleneck. The junction serves as a chaotic meeting point for Chittur Road, the Palakkad town connection road, and two NH service roads. Heavy goods vehicles, in particular, struggle to negotiate the sharp turns at the Kadankod underpass. Funnelling heavy cargo traffic bound for the Kozhikode Bypass through this narrow bottleneck is highly likely to bring regional traffic to a complete standstill. Commuters argue that the construction company has devised these traffic regulations without considering ground realities or the hardships of road users. Experts suggest that a more viable alternative exists: instead of forcing a long detour via Kadankod, a temporary diversion road could be laid from the service road running directly beneath the Chandranagar flyover. Meanwhile, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has also drawn criticism for its lack of transparency, with locals pointing out that the authority routinely fails to publish official traffic advisories in the media before implementing major diversions.