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Now, Jaipur-Delhi side of Hero Honda Chowk flyover to be opened in March
Gurugram: The Jaipur-Delhi carriageway of Hero Honda Chowk flyover is likely to open for commuters only next month as the repaired stretch is yet to be tested for
Gurugram: The Jaipur-Delhi carriageway of Hero Honda Chowk flyover is likely to open for commuters only next month as the repaired stretch is yet to be tested for strength and safety, officials familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
On January 24, the Union minister of road transport and highways, Nitin Gadkari, had said during a press conference in Manesar that the flyover would start by February 15.
The officials of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said that non-destructive test (NDT) will be done on the flyover and only after its report comes that they can open the facility for commuters. Ashok Sharma, project director, NHAI Gurugram, said, “The Hero Honda Chowk flyover may be opened for commuters in the first week of March. NDT testing is yet to be done by the contractor for the project.”
NHAI contractor said that the highways authority officials are not taking any chance with the repair works. Also, they have to make a crash barrier again on the portion of the flyover where repairs have been carried out, the contractor said.
Rakesh Mathur, deputy manager of Valecha Engineering Ltd, the contractor for the project, said, “There are two or three works which are still pending — crash barrier has to be put and 15m road (blacktop) has to be made on the stretch which has been repaired. The road roller can ply on the flyover when the repaired portion is strong enough. This process will take another 7-10 days.”
The contractor said that they will do the testing for the flyover in a proper manner and won’t be in any sort of rush. “The entire flyover will be scanned to determine the strength of the concrete. Testing will take another five days,” said Mathur.
Road safety experts said that the non-destructive test must be done before opening a flyover. G K Sahu, head of department, bridge engineering and structures, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), New Delhi, said, “Tests are a necessity to know how safe the flyover is. NDT test will determine the toughness of the flyover.”
On May 8 last year, a large chunk of concrete fell off the surface of the flyover causing a hole on the road. Around 15 metres of the Jaipur-Delhi side has been laid again. The contractor for the project said that it has cost them around ₹1 crore in repairs since the concrete fell off last year.
Union minister Gadkari had said in Manesar that repair works on the Hero Honda Chowk flyover were going on at a steady pace and he was satisfied with the repairs being done. “The repaired flyover at Hero Honda Chowk will be much stronger from the present one and will last the next five years,” said Gadkari.
The construction of Hero Honda Chowk flyover — part of a major revamp project carried out by NHAI to unclog the perennially congested crossing on NH-8 — had begun in November 2014. Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar later put the project on the fast track in the wake of infamous ‘Gurujam’ in July 2016. The flyover was finally inaugurated in July 2017.
