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NHAI to start work on crucial decongestion projects in Delhi this year
The four projects are National Highway 709B (Akshardham to Eastern Peripheral Expressway to Saharanpur bypass), Delhi-Noida Direct Flyway to KMP interchange via Kalindi Kunj bypass (part of Delhi-Mumbai expressway), Urban Extension Road (UER)-II and Dwarka Expressway.
Work on four major road infrastructure projects planned as part of a Rs50,000-crore plan to decongest Delhi and curb vehicular pollution will begin this year. The new road links will not only reduce the traffic load on arterial roads such as Ring Road but also make it easier to travel between various zones of the city.
The four projects are National Highway 709B (Akshardham to Eastern Peripheral Expressway to Saharanpur bypass), Delhi-Noida Direct Flyway to KMP interchange via Kalindi Kunj bypass (part of Delhi-Mumbai expressway), Urban Extension Road (UER)-II and Dwarka Expressway.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) which is executing the four projects said while work on some has already begun, on others it will start this year.
Of the four projects, UER-II and Kalindi Kunj bypass were planned by the Delhi Development Authority and the Delhi government’s Public Works Department decades ago. But they got stuck due to technical and land acquisition related issues, said senior DDA and PWD officials.
Decongesting East Delhi
The 31.1km corridor between Akshardham and EPE, part of national highway 709B, will start from Akshardham flyover and pass through densely populated areas such as Geeta Colony, Shastri Park, Khajuri Khas, etc. Of the 31.1kms, 14.7km will be in Delhi and the entire stretch will be elevated, officials said.
Though tenders for the project were floated in January 2019, the project got delayed as the ministry of road transport and highways asked NHAI to reassess the financial viability of the project and explore options to bring down the cost. The direction came as the ministry was focusing on prioritising highway projects after evaluating them financially.
After the evaluation, the total cost of the project has been revised to ₹2,388 crore from the earlier estimate of ₹2,820 crore. A senior NHAI official said, “We have opened the financial bids for the project. The work on the 31.1 km stretch will be done in two packages. Based on the financial bids, we have declared the contractors for the two packages. The work will be awarded soon.”
The official added, “The work should start in 4-5 months. Some clearances such as environment, fire, setting up a temporary bitumen plant, etc has to be taken.”
Kalindi Kunj bypass
Work on the 59km corridor connecting Delhi Noida Direct Flyway to Western Peripheral Expressway on the Delhi- Mumbai expressway will start in the next few months. A senior NHAI official, who is associated with the project said, “The work will be awarded soon and the process to apply for various clearances will start. We are hopeful that the work will start from May.”
To be constructed at a cost of ₹3,580, it will include Kalindi Kunj bypass project, which was conceived by Delhi Public Works Department in 2002. The PWD could not complete it due to land issues between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh governments.
Of the 59kms, nine kilometres will be constructed in Delhi. An NHAI official said that the entire stretch in Delhi will be elevated. The project will provide seamless connectivity to commuters from east and north Delhi going towards Faridabad or Gurugram. This will take the vehicular load off the Mehrauli-Badarpur road.
Dwarka expressway
Work on both the Haryana and Delhi sections of the 29km Dwarka expressway has begun. An official said NHAI has finally got all the necessary clearances for the project. “The deadline for the project is September 2022,” said another official.
Urban Extension Road-II
This was proposed in the Master Plan of Delhi-2021 as a third Ring Road. Planned by the Delhi Development Authority in 2016, the project was transferred to NHAI in 2017 by the Centre as there was inordinate delay in the execution of the project due to land acquisition issues.
NHAI, which invited the bids for the ₹7,715.6 crore project in December 2019, asked DDA to pay for the viability gap worth ₹4,000 crore, as the project is turning out to be expensive.
Senior NHAI and DDA officials said that the matter was under discussion for some time to find a solution to the problem. It is learnt that the two agencies have reached an understanding to make the project financially viable. A senior DDA official said, “It is an important project and efforts are being made to expedite it. The resolution to the issue regarding funding has been found.”
An NHAI official said, “The bids were invited in December 2019 . Once financial issues are finalised, we will start work.”
The UER-II project, which has been in planning for over a decade, was finalised by the DDA in 2016 in a bid to decongest the city. The 75.71km-long project will connect four national highways ( NH-1, 10, 8 and 2) and provide seamless access between north, northwest Delhi and IGI airport and Gurugram. Of the 75.71-kms, 43kms (Approx) will be constructed in Delhi.
Experts hopeful
Transport experts say that the construction of these projects will ease the traffic load on inner-city roads, as people can move from one part of the city to the other without coming to the centre of the city. S Velmurugan, chief scientist, traffic engineering and road safety, at CSIR-CRRI said, “The problem of non-Delhi bound traffic entering Delhi has been resolved to a large extent with the construction of eastern and western peripheral expressways. The other projects such as UER-II, Kalindi Kunj bypass, etc only further provide a buffer and reduce traffic load on city roads, as people coming from north Delhi need not to go through central Delhi to go to IGI airport.”
