Ring Road, flyovers to get safety upgrade soon, says PWD

Officials said the repairs are being taken up on priority after repeated complaints were reported about missing or damaged crash barriers, particularly on flyovers that witness heavy speeding and congestion.

The Public Works Department (PWD) is set to initiate repair and maintenance work on guard rails and crash barriers along the Ring Road and bypass flyovers to increase safety on the high-speed corridor, officials said on Friday.

If executed on schedule, officials said commuters can expect visible improvements in safety infrastructure across Ring Road flyovers within weeks. (Representative picture/HT)

The department has invited bids for the project and is expecting to hand it over to a contractor by the end of January, after which the work will take three to four months to finish. A budget of ₹96.77 lakh has also been approved.

PWD officials said the repairs are being taken up on priority after repeated complaints were reported about missing or damaged crash barriers, particularly on flyovers that witness heavy speeding and congestion.

The scope of work includes fixing single-sided W-metal beam crash barriers over a total of 2,120 metres, supply of 44,651kg of MS pipes for flyover guard rails, installation of 3,269 metres of railing, and 2,725 chemical anchor fixings. Concrete foundations and enamel painting of new and existing structures are also part of the project, officials said.

“Ring Road carries some of the highest traffic volumes in the city. Over the years, wear and tear, minor collisions and delayed maintenance have left several stretches vulnerable. This project focuses on restoring and reinforcing guard rails and crash barriers and placing retro-reflective tapes to meet safety norms,” a senior PWD official said.

Officials said the revamp is also important keeping in mind the fatal accident in Noida last week, where a 27-year-old man died and the absence of proper signage and crash barriers at a construction site was flagged as a contributing factor.

“Safety features like crash barriers are not cosmetic additions. They are critical engineering controls that reduce severity of accidents. Any missing or damaged section becomes a potential hazard. We will be rectifying all such spots,” the official added.

If executed on schedule, officials said commuters can expect visible improvements in safety infrastructure across Ring Road flyovers within weeks.

Transport safety and traffic experts welcomed the decision while also stressing the need for long-term planning rather than reactive maintenance.

“Delhi’s Ring Road is an ageing corridor. Many flyovers were built decades ago when traffic volumes were far lower. With present-day congestion and speeding, guard rails and noise barriers must be upgraded to contemporary standards, not just patched,” said S Velmurugan, chief scientist and head of the traffic engineering division at the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI).

Concerns about structural design and capacity issues on the Ring Road have been raised in earlier reports by HT. Experts have highlighted how bottlenecks, short merging lengths and poor lane discipline on the Outer Ring Road contribute to frequent accidents and traffic pile-ups. They have also pointed at outdated geometric design and inconsistent safety infrastructure as compounding risks.