U-turn underpass at Sirhaul border likely to open on Independence Day: NHAI

The completion of the underpass on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway will allow commuters from Gurugram to take a U-turn to go towards Ambience Mall and DLF Phase 3 without having to travel up to Rajokri in Delhi

A U-turn underpass at Sirhaul toll plaza, which has been a longstanding demand of commuters in the city, is likely to be opened on August 15, officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said on Wednesday.

NHAI officials said that the underpass is 14 metres wide and the height of the tunnel is 5.5 metres. (HT Archive)

Vikas Mittal, senior manager, NHAI, said that civic work on the underpass has been completed and finishing touches are being given to the structure. “The work of painting the inside of the underpass is going on. Lights are being installed and other such fixtures are getting fitted. If the monsoon remains normal then we will be opening the underpass for traffic on August 15,” said Mittal.

The completion of the underpass on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway will allow commuters from Gurugram to take a U-turn to go towards Ambience Mall and DLF Phase 3 without having to travel up to Rajokri in Delhi.

The original deadline for the completion of the Sirhaul underpass, which had started on March 5, 2019, was September 4 last year. The project was delayed due to a ban on construction imposed by the Supreme Court in November 2019 to curb air pollution. Last year, the three-month lockdown imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic also affected the progress of the work, said officials.

Mittal said that measures to counter waterlogging have also been taken, with the construction of catch drains on both sides of the underpass. “The location of the underpass is such that heavy waterlogging does not take place here, but still, we have taken adequate measures,” he said.

However, a four-foot patch of the main carriageway of the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway caved in last Tuesday (July 20) morning due to heavy rainwater accumulation inside the under-construction underpass. The NHAI officials had then said that a high volume of rainwater accumulated inside the underpass and without a concrete slab on top of a 15-metre portion, the water came in contact with the exposed road surface, leading to the cave-in.

In a report by HT dated July 20, an official working for the contractor undertaking the project had said that rainwater accumulation in the underpass is a common occurrence and it usually drains out. However, due to the high-intensity rain, it would take 24 hours to pump out the water with a 15-horsepower motor pump provided there is no further rainfall, the official had said.

NHAI officials said that the underpass is 14 metres wide and the height of the tunnel is 5.5 metres. Energy-saving LED lights of 75 watts have been installed and signage and dividers have been constructed, as per the highway norms.

The length of the U-turn underpass is 377 metres, while the entire stretch, including access roads, is 1.5 kilometres. The service roads are 559 metres long and 7 metres wide. Commuters have been set a speed limit of 40kmph in the underpass.

A flyover at Shankar Chowk, which opened last year, was also built as part of this project.