E-Paper
After 7 years, Lucknow finally gets Outer Ring Road
It will take some time to get fully operational; work underway on the Sitapur road patch, where the NHAI has stopped movement of heavy vehicles
LUCKNOW The state capital on Monday finally got its eight-lane 104-km Outer Ring Road after a wait of seven years as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during a grand ceremony in Gurugram (Haryana), virtually inaugurated three packages of the road, constructed at a cost of ₹5,500 crore, in the presence of defence minister Rajnath Singh and chief minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow.
The Outer Ring Road will take some time to get fully operational. Work is underway on war footing on the Sitapur road patch, where the NHAI has stopped movement of heavy vehicles.
The road will streamline travel for commuters heading to Barabanki, Gorakhpur, Ayodhya, Sitapur, Gonda, Hardoi, Kanpur, Varanasi, Rae Bareli, Sultanpur, and other districts, eliminating the necessity of passing through Lucknow to reach these destinations, said defence minister Rajnath Singh speaking at a programme organised at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan.
“Commuters will reach their destinations directly, bypassing Lucknow. Besides, it will ease traffic congestion in Lucknow,” he added.
Once operational, the Outer Ring Road is expected to divert an estimated one lakh vehicles daily, offering relief to commuters from traffic congestion within the city. This project is poised to accelerate the economic progress of Lucknow with numerous schemes planned along its route.
“In his address, defence minister Rajnath Singh said heavy vehicles would not be allowed to move on certain stretches of the Outer Ring Road for the next 15 days. But we are confident that work will be completed on that stretch in the next few days while the load testing of the stretch will also be done before starting heavy traffic,” said an elated Saurabh Chaurasia, project manager of NHAI.
He added, “In addition, the Green Corridor being built by the Lucknow Development Authority, which will connect Shaheed Path via the cut near Gomti River, is set to ease traffic congestion even further.”
The road also holds strategic importance as it intersects five national and six state highways. Sultanpur Road, Rae Bareli Road, Hardoi Road, Kanpur Road, Ayodhya Road and Sitapur Road are some of the key routes that the ring road connects to. This connectivity facilitates efficient transportation within Lucknow and positions the city as a key hub for economic activities and regional integration.
SALIENT FEATURES
157 entry and exit points
43 villages covered
The stretch has 26 bridges, 6 RoBs, 12 flyovers, 34 underpasses
1,500 acres acquired for the project in Barabanki and Lucknow
IN 2016 construction of Outer Ring Road commenced. It was expected to become operational in 2021, but due to Covid and other factors, the project got delayed.
