KANPUR/LUCKNOW The old Jajmau Ganga bridge carrying traffic from Lucknow towards Kanpur will undergo a three-month block from September 1 for bearing replacement work by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), with traffic diversions planned across Kanpur, Unnao and Lucknow.
The nearly 730-metre-long bridge was built in the 1970s. A parallel bridge constructed in 2012 under the Golden Quadrilateral Project, carrying traffic towards Lucknow will, however, remain open. The bearing replacement contract was awarded to Maharashtra-based Rehabilitation Engineering for ₹5.60 crore on April 11. The work has a completion deadline, which ends on December 12.
NHAI project director Pankaj Yadav said the diversion plan was ready, but the authority had waited because of the movement of Kanwariyas across the bridge during the month of Sawan. “We have sent the letters to take the diversion from September 1,” he said.
The highways authority has written to the DMs and police chiefs of Kanpur, Unnao and Lucknow seeking arrangements for the diversion. Traffic from Lucknow will be diverted through different national highways, expressways and state highways during the closure.
Heavy vehicles will be encouraged to use alternative routes, including the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, Ganga Expressway and NH-30, NH-31, NH-34 and NH-335, to reduce their movement through the city, said officials.
{{/usCountry}}Heavy vehicles will be encouraged to use alternative routes, including the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, Ganga Expressway and NH-30, NH-31, NH-34 and NH-335, to reduce their movement through the city, said officials.
{{/usCountry}}Chief general manager, NHAI (UP) Gautam Vishal said the diversion plan has been prepared destination-wise to distribute traffic across multiple corridors and prevent excessive pressure on any single route. He said traffic management would be monitored during the closure and arrangements could be reviewed according to ground conditions.
“For traffic from Lucknow towards Kanpur, vehicles will use NH-27, travel through Unnao and proceed via Shuklaganj and Ganga Barrage to Kanpur. Similarly, traffic from Unnao towards Kanpur can use the Shuklaganj-Ganga Barrage route,” he added.
The three-month closure is likely to significantly alter movement of heavy vehicles on the Kanpur-Lucknow corridor. Transporters have sought more clarity on the implementation of the plan, particularly for trucks, and said a route suitable for private vehicles may not necessarily work efficiently for heavy commercial traffic.
The diversion is expected to affect vehicles travelling towards Hamirpur and Banda the most. They will have to cover around 75 km more, while vehicles travelling from Unnao towards Etawah will have to travel around 30 km extra.
For vehicles travelling from Lucknow to Kannauj, the diversion could actually reduce the journey by around 60 km.
Transporters said the key challenge now is ensuring that the diversion routes can handle heavy vehicles without creating new bottlenecks.
Raju Aneja, president of the Lucknow Transport Nagar Association, said the industry should be involved in monitoring the plan. “The diversion has to be assessed from the perspective of trucks, not just cars. Additional distance means higher fuel, driver, maintenance and turnaround costs,” he said.
General secretary Raj Narain said the impact could eventually reach consumers through higher freight charges. “The authorities should monitor congestion on alternative routes and modify traffic arrangements, wherever required,” he said.
For Kannauj and Aligarh, traffic from Lucknow will use the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, reach NH-34 at Araul and proceed onwards. Traffic from Unnao can use the Ganga Expressway and Agra-Lucknow Expressway before joining NH-34.
For Jhansi and Orai, one option is the Agra-Lucknow Expressway via Kudrail and Bundelkhand Expressway. The alternative is through NH-27, Unnao, NH-31, Bihar, Chaurgara, Ghatampur, SH-40 via Bhognipur and NH-27.
KEY POINTS
* For Agra and Etawah-bound traffic, vehicles from Lucknow can take the Agra-Lucknow Expressway, exit at Chaupala and use NH-234. An alternative route is NH-27 through Unnao, NH-31 via Bihar, Buxar Mor and NH-19. Traffic from Unnao will have similar options, including the Ganga Expressway-Agra-Lucknow Expressway corridor.
*For Auraiya, the preferred route from Lucknow is the Agra-Lucknow Expressway via Kudrail village and the Bundelkhand Expressway. The NH-27-NH-31-Bihar-Buxar-NH-19 route will provide an alternative.
*For Banda-Mahoba, traffic from Lucknow will be diverted via NH-30, Bachhrawan, SH-13, Lalganj and NH-335 through Fatehpur before proceeding towards Banda-Mahoba. Traffic from Unnao will use NH-31 via Bihar before joining the same corridor.