Delhi: Underpass, flyovers to ease ride between Vasant Kunj and IGI airport soon

Commuters going from Vasant Kunj to Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport will soon get to travel signal-free.
The Delhi government has finalised the proposal of an underpass between Vasant Kunj and the airport. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has also given its go ahead for the project, which the Public Works Department (PWD) hopes to complete before the end of 2019.
Apart from an underpass at National Highway 8, a flyover at the Vasant Kunj side and a flyover at the airport side has also been proposed, which will also cut travel time by 30 minutes.
“Commuters coming from Vasant Kunj road almost always get stuck in the traffic jam near Mahipalpur. We have now built a new road so that commuters can avoid the Mahipalpur intersection. But, they still have to cross NH-8 to come to the airport side. Therefore, an underpass has been proposed so that commuters can directly come to the northern access road, popularly known as airport approach road,” said a PWD official.

Officials said the flyovers at the Vasant Kunj side and airport side will be around 1km long each while the length of the underpass would be 1.2km. Cost of the project was estimated to be around Rs 188 crore, with around 80% of the money coming from the from Union ministry of urban development, which is funding some projects to decongest Delhi.
“On the northern Mahipalpur bypass road, a one-way flyover will be constructed for commuters going to Vasant Kunj. Similarly, the flyover on airport road will cater to traffic coming from the airport. The underpass, however, will cater to the traffic from both sides,” the official added.
The PWD has got the approval from AAI and DDA for the project and is in discussion with NHAI as the underpass has to be constructed below the highway. If required, NHAI will construct the underpass.
In November last year, the Delhi government was directed by the high court to finalise plan to build an underpass at Mahipalpur crossing.
For better connectivity to airport from south Delhi, PWD is also making the Rao Tula Ram flyover two-way.
The new Rao Tula Ram flyover will be longer than the existing flyover and will make the ride easy to the airport.
The new 2.7km long flyover will start from the existing Palam flyover and will take commuters till the Army base, where the flyover connecting NH-8 will start. According to the plan, the PWD has to construct a three-lane elevated loop or a wing from Munirka flyover, which will run parallel to RTR flyover and land just before NH8.
-
Spice of life | Independence is in the air, give peace, love a chance
Whenever I drive towards my village, which is minutes away from the Indo-Pak border of Attari-Wagah, I tune in to City FM 89.0, a popular radio station of Pakistan, the frequency of which is received in our border villages. If I have guests along, I ardently introduce it to them, too. “Do you know the song you're listening to is being played by a Pakistani radio broadcaster?” I tell them.
-
Manoj Sinha leads tricolour march in Srinagar
Jammu & Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha led a tricolour march on the banks of the Dal Lake in Srinagar on Sunday as part of the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign to mark 75 years of India's Independence. Speaking on the occasion, Sinha said Jammu & Kashmir was breaking all records in its enthusiasm for the Independence Day celebrations. Sinha recalled Mahatma Gandhi's Dandi march and its role in the country's freedom struggle.
-
Maharashtra cabinet: Fadnavis gets home; CM Shinde keeps urban development
Days after the Maharashtra cabinet expansion, portfolios have been allocated to ministers, with chief minister Eknath Shinde keeping the urban development ministry and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis getting the home, finance, water resources, housing and power departments. A statement from the chief minister's office said BJP minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil will be the new revenue minister in the new Shiv Sena-BJP government in the state. Former state BJP president Chandrakant Patil will also look after parliamentary affairs.
-
The wait for CUET is killing us, say Delhi’s college aspirants
College life is something that every individual eagerly awaits. With the Common University Entrance Test facing several interruptions and glitches, most Delhi-based youth aspiring to get into colleges to begin their campus journey are left feeling low and disappointed. Some rue that their cool plans are gradually losing hot steam. Same case is of Parul Sharma, another class XII pass out, who wants to get into a good college the soonest possible.
-
Patriotic vibes: Tiranga tales by DU students
The Tricolour is fluttering high and mighty, almost anywhere one sees in the city. With the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign becoming a hit among residents, the youth in the Capital are also doing their bit to celebrate the 75 years of India's independence, with a dash of cool quotient coupled with full josh for patriotism.