Four upcoming road links to solve Delhi’s traffic mess

The projects are part of a ₹50,000 crore plan launched by the Centre in 2019 to curb air pollution in Delhi and cut traffic jams

NEW DELHI: Work on four major road infrastructure projects planned as part of a ₹50,000crore plan to decongest Delhi and curb vehicular pollution will begin this year. The new road links will not only reduce the traffic load on arterial roads such as Ring Road but also make it easier to travel between various zones of the city.

The four projects, announced in the run up to the 2019 general elections, are National Highway 709B (Akshardham to Eastern Peripheral Expressway to Saharanpur bypass), Delhi-noida Direct Flyway to KMP interchange via Kalindi Kunj bypass (part of Delhi-mumbai expressway), Urban Extension Road (UER)-II and Dwarka Expressway.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) which is executing the four projects said while work on some has already begun, on others it will start this year.

Of the four projects, UER-II and Kalindi Kunj bypass were planned by the Delhi Development Authority and the Delhi government’s Public Works Department decades ago. But they got stuck due to technical and land acquisition related issues, said senior DDA and PWD officials.

Decongesting East Delhi

The 31.1km corridor between Akshardham and EPE, part of national highway 709B, will start from Akshardham flyover and pass through densely populated areas such as Geeta Colony, Shastri Park, Khajuri Khas, etc. Of the 31.1kms, 14.7km will be in Delhi and the entire stretch will be elevated, officials said.

Though tenders for the project were floated in January 2019, the project got delayed as the ministry of road transport and highways asked NHAI to reassess the financial viability of the project and explore options to bring down the cost.

After the evaluation, the total cost of the project has been revised to ₹2,388 crore from the earlier estimate of ₹2,820 crore. A senior NHAI official said, “We have opened the financial bids for the project. The work on the 31.1 km stretch will be done in two packages. Based on the financial bids, we have declared the contractors for the two packages. The work will be awarded soon.”

The official added, “The work should start in 4-5 months. Some clearances such as environment, fire, setting up a temporary bitumen plant, etc has to be taken.”

Kalindi Kunj bypass

Work on the 59km corridor connecting Delhi Noida Direct Flyway