Ashram flyover: Traffic snarls as both carriageways shut

The closure of the flyover resulted in traffic congestion at the key intersection, which is used by over 350,000 vehicles daily

Both carriageways of the Ashram flyover on Delhi’s Ring Road have been closed for the last leg of construction to link it with an extension around 50m away a day after they were shut but one of them was reopened within two hours as the closure triggered snarls with bumper-to-bumper traffic.

None of the carriageways is going to reopen for traffic for 45 days. (Hindustan Times)

A Public Works Department (PWD) official said the re-opened carriageway was closed at 12:30am. “Now none of the carriageways are going to reopen for traffic because the digging work has started at the point where the two carriageways of the flyover end [near DTL colony]. The digging work is required to construct a new road to connect the Ashram flyover and the new DND flyover.”

The official said the work of connecting the two flyovers is likely to be completed in 45 days. The flyover is likely to remain shut for 45 days, the official added.

The closure of the flyover resulted in traffic congestion at the key intersection, which is used by over 350,000 vehicles daily. The snarls on Sunday showed how unprepared the agencies were to manage the rush of vehicles that needs to be diverted.

Aryan Srivastava, a commuter, said he spent 24 minutes travelling just three kilometres to the Kilokri village after dropping his father at his office in Lajpat Nagar. “...I used to complete [this journey] in 10 minutes maximum every working day,” said Srivastava.

Another commuter, Vishal Chandra, a software professional who works in Noida, said he was stuck in the jam near Vinobhapuri Metro Station, and the entire stretch was jammed till DND. “My colleague who took the route informed me about the traffic congestion at 8:30am and around one hour later, it only worsened.”

The traffic police have deployed additional personnel on the stretch to manage traffic movement. The side carriageways taking the traffic load after the flyover closure continue to remain in a bad shape and are encroached upon on multiple points, resulting in traffic snarls.

A traffic police officer said they were monitoring the situation and trying to ensure that commuters have to face minimum snarls.

The traffic police have advised commuters to use alternative routes to avoid the jams at Ashram.

The PWD has put up banners and posters with diversion signs at multiple points, alerting commuters about the Ashram flyover closure, and advising people to take alternate routes.

The footpaths along the stretch are broken and encroached upon at various places, which means foot traffic will spill over on the carriageways.

A large pit is lying uncovered on the footpath near the DTL colony. The construction site has not been properly barricaded.

“The PWD has not done enough work to ensure a smooth shifting of the traffic from the flyover to the sideways. We are forced to walk on the roads because the footpaths do not exist,” said Yogendra Bhatt, a local resident who uses the footpath to reach Ashram Metro Station from Sunlight Colony.

Jeevan Nagar, Kilokri, DTL Colony, and Sunlight Colony residents use the footpath to go to the metro station and bus terminal. Since footpaths are blocked or broken, they walk on the road, slowing down the traffic on the busy road.

At the Nehru Nagar bus stop, work is going on to repair the sidewalk. The road from DND flyway towards Lajpat Nagar is also dotted with potholes and no re-carpeting has been done.

The re-carpeting of the side roads was important before the closure of the flyover to ensure the movement of traffic was not slowed, said S Velmurugan, chief scientist of Central Road Research Institute. “The reason behind traffic congestion is the slow discharge of traffic from a road,” he said. “The obstructions will put brakes on the vehicles, and will slow down the discharge of the vehicles, leading to traffic congestion.”

In an advisory, the traffic police asked commuters from Badarpur to take Mata Mandir Marg for Ring Road and Sarai Kale Khan. “Commuters coming from Badarpur, Sarita Vihar, and Jamia are advised to follow a U-turn for Captain Gaur Marg, Lajpat Nagar, AIIMS, and commuters coming from Chirag Delhi and the IIT side are advised to follow Ring Road for Noida,” said the advisory.

Similarly, commuters from Akshardham and Noida have been asked to take Bhairon Road, Mathura Road-Sarai Kale Khan for AIIMS and Dhaula Kuan, while those from AIIMS and New Delhi Lodhi Road, Lala Lajpat Rai Marg for Ring Road and Mathura Road.