Traffic snarls worsen on ORR as Kalkaji Flyover ramp razed

On Monday, the 500-metre stretch on the surface level intersection of the Outer Ring Road with Ma Anandmayee Marg where the digging work is being carried out was taking over 15 minutes to cover with movement at a near standstill.

Traffic movement took a further hit in south Delhi on Monday after the Public Works Department (PWD) kicked off the demolition of the ramp-section of the Kalkaji Flyover. The situation at the stretch has been particularly dire since work began in the Modi Mill-Savitri flyover project nearly a month ago, with bottlenecks stretching as far as Kalkaji Temple and Nehru Enclave during peak hours.

As part of this work, a large ramp section of the single carriageway of Kalkaji Flyover has been demolished. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

On Monday, the 500-metre stretch on the surface level intersection of the Outer Ring Road with Ma Anandmayee Marg where the digging work is being carried out was taking over 15 minutes to cover with movement at a near standstill. With the project expected to be completed by December 2027, no immediate relief for commuters is likely.

A senior PWD official explained that the demolition work on the Kalkaji flyover is being carried out as part of the Modi Mill-Savitri flyover project. “Only the ramp section will be demolished as part of the elevated corridor and the viaduct portion will not be demolished. A continuous flyover from the Railway Overbridge at Modi Mill to Kalkaji will be constructed,” the official added.

A spot check found that the construction agency has begun the excavation for construction of pillars towards the Modi Mill end. As part of this work, a large ramp section of the single carriageway of Kalkaji Flyover has been demolished.

The barricading for this has left most of the road inaccessible with a bus stop, stairs for a foot-over bridge, a damaged road with deep potholes near the Okhla NSIC metro section stretching compounding the problem. An alternative route being used by commuters — an internal road that goes past the Lotus Temple — has massive potholes that worsen the bottlenecks.

Earlier this year, the PWD had announced the twin infrastructure project of expanding the Modi Mill flyover up to Kalkaji and doubling the one-way Savitri Cinema flyover as part of its integrated development of the stretch.

The projects were approved at a combined cost of ₹412 crore, with ₹150 crore earmarked for the current financial year. According to officials, the projects are aimed at easing congestion along key arterial stretches in south Delhi, particularly the Outer Ring Road corridor and connecting routes that witness heavy peak-hour traffic. Work began on August 20.

Officials had said, at the time, that measures would be put in place to manage traffic during the construction phase, including diversions and phased execution to reduce inconvenience. Detailed traffic management plans, they further said, were expected to be rolled out closer to the start of construction.

Delhi traffic police has issued several advisories for the stretch over the last month. One such advisory said that, with the flyover construction work is underway on both carriageways, “traffic movement may remain heavy, particularly during peak hours. Commuters are advised to plan ahead and allow extra travel time.”

An inspection by senior Delhi Traffic Police officials was also carried out last week whereby PWD had been asked to deploy 8-10 traffic marshals at the site. However, no such marshals were seen during the spot check.

“My commuting time has increased by 20-25 minutes as the road starting from Kalkaji temple up to the Modi Mill flyover is jam packed all the time. They have set up barricades in areas where no work is taking place. There should be marshals and traffic police to help ease the movement. The least that the government can do is repair the potholes in the remaining bottleneck,” said Anish Kumar (32), who commutes regularly between RK Puram and Jamia.

When complete, the project is expected to ease movement around Chittaranjan Park, Greater Kailash, Chirag Delhi, Kalkaji and Nehru Place, where traffic from the Chirag Delhi flyover currently splits in three directions, often causing jams. The existing one-way, two-lane Savitri flyover and Kalkaji flyover were both built in 2001 and they will be expanded to two lanes in each direction. Another elevated stretch will be built from the Modi Mills flyover.

The plan is part of PWD’s larger push for a signal-free corridor from Sarai Kale Khan to Malviya Nagar. The proposed flyover is expected to streamline traffic movement by allowing uninterrupted passage along the Outer Ring Road, reducing delays caused by signalised crossings. The expansion of the Modi Mill flyover is aimed at addressing congestion on the stretch between Nehru Place and Kalkaji. At present, traffic merging near the Modi Mill intersection often leads to long queues during peak hours. Officials said extending the flyover up to Kalkaji will help segregate through traffic from local movement, thereby improving overall flow.

PWD officials added that traffic surveys conducted in these areas indicated sustained high vehicular load, with projections showing further increase in the coming years. “These projects have been designed keeping in mind current traffic density as well as future demand. The aim is to create grade-separated corridors that minimise stoppages and improve travel time,” a senior official said.

First proposed in 2015 and cleared by the Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (Planning & Engineering) Centre (UTTIPEC) in 2016, the project was stalled for years due to funding shortages, land acquisition challenges and delays in tree-felling permissions, till it finally received all clearances last year.