Delhi govt appoints consultant for road redesign project

Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said the Delhi government has appointed a consultant for its ambitious road redesign project under which 540km of arterial

Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said the Delhi government has appointed a consultant for its ambitious road redesign project under which 540km of arterial roads in the city will be developed with features such as landscaping, and cycle and pedestrian tracks.

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Kejriwal chaired a review meeting on the proposal and directed the consultant to submit a detailed project report (DPR) by February next year so that all works can be completed in two years (by early 2023). Public Works Department (PWD) minister Satyendar Jain, the PWD secretary, the PWD engineer-in-chief and various other officials of the department were also present in the review meeting.

“The consultant is responsible for preparing and submitting a DPR by February, based on which the tenders will be given and the operations to design the 540km of roads will begin by June 2021. People face issues because there are bottlenecks on roads, which lead to traffic congestion,” the government said in a statement.

“The priority will be on removing the bottlenecks first, for a smooth flow of traffic and creating an organised lane system. The second goal would be to increase the efficiency of the existing space of the roads in the city so that spaces are best utilised as per their abilities. There will be measured and planned spaces for vehicles, non-motorized vehicles, footpaths, and side-lanes. The footpaths will be widely mapped to an average of 10 feet for the convenience of the pedestrians. These footpaths will be redesigned and reconstructed as per a standard height for the convenience of the physically handicapped. The project will help increase greenery, re-harvesting system will be implemented in the sewer drains,” it said.

The chief minister directed that not even an inch of the surface of any road or roadside should be left uncovered, in order to ensure that there is no dust on the roads. Adequate grasses and shrubs will be planted on all surfaces to ensure dust control, a spokesperson said.