Good news for Delhi mall-goers: Govt plans mega redesign for Saket road

The PWD has proposed a realignment of the Press Enclave Road surrounded by malls and hospitals. The plan includes construction of a skywalk connecting important establishments to take pedestrians off the road.

The Delhi government has proposed to decongest the Press Enclave Road, which is surrounded by malls, hospitals, a court and metro stations. A meeting was held last month to start the project, which includes shifting of divider and construction of flyovers.

The Public Works Department (PWD) has proposed a realignment of the road and the construction of a skywalk connecting important establishments to rake pedestrian movements off the road. (HT FILE)

The Public Works Department (PWD) has proposed a realignment of the road and the construction of a skywalk connecting important establishments to rake pedestrian movements off the road. It also plans to regulate non-motorised vehicles, which is the main reason for congestion on this stretch.

“The 3.8km stretch of Press Enclave Road connects to Aurobindo Marg on one side and Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg on another. We have proposed either a skywalk from Malviya Nagar metro station to district court complex or a flyover from Max hospital to district court complex. The traffic is slow because of encroachment by cycle rickshaws and autorickshaws and pedestrian movements,” said a PWD official.

However, the skywalk would need a consent from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), as the one proposed is in the range of 100-300 metres from ASI site — Khirki Masjid and Satpula monuments.

The Press Enclave Road connects traffic from Khirki village, Hauz Rani, Saket, Malviya Nagar and Pushp Vihar, apart from connecting commercial hubs. There is already a huge demand for parking from residents of the area; the mall-going traffic too requires parking spaces. Heavy pedestrian movement takes place from Malviya Nagar metro station to Saket district court, slowing the traffic.

Read: Traffic nightmare outside malls in Saket

To give connectivity from the Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg, the PWD has proposed a flyover for vehicles that have to turn right.

“The road connects to Gurgaon and Faridabad apart from connecting residential areas such as Tughlakabad, Tigri, Khanpur, Saket and Mehrauli. The 3km stretch of this road needs to be redesigned, keeping in mind the heavy bus traffic,” said a PWD official.

The PWD officials said that a stakeholder meeting was held on June 8 and after NOC (No Objection Certificate) from all the agencies, the work will start.

Lieutenant governor Anil Baijal is also reviewing a task force for de-congestion of pilot corridors — Aurobindo Marg (Aurobindo Marg to Andheria More), Mathura Road (Neela Gumbad to Badarpur Flyover), Outer Ring Road (Chirag Delhi Crossing to Savitri Flyover), Sardar Patel Marg, (11 Murti to Rajokari Border) and Dhaula Kuan, (Dhaula Kuan Flyover to GGR Flyover, Sanjay T-Point).

He has directed the local bodies to come out with a plan to create more stack parking, so that road side parking can be freed for better circulation of traffic.

The task force formed by the L-G conducted extensive field visits and studies, and submitted a list of 77 corridors that need to be decongested. Of this, 28 were identified as Category A “priority” corridors.