Cabinet clears Rs1983-crore Delhi-Meerut Expressway project

The project will help reduce the travel time between Delhi and Meerut to 45 minutes from the present three hours

HT Correspondent

The third stretch of the project will involve widening of the crucial stretch from UP Gate (above) to Dasna. (Hindustan Times)

In a move that will go a long way in decongesting traffic in the Capital, the union cabinet on Thursday approved the third stretch of the Delhi-Meerut expressway project.

The project will help reduce the travel time between Delhi and Meerut to 45 minutes from the present three hours.

The third stretch of the project will involve widening of the crucial stretch from UP Gate to Dasna.

“The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for the development of the second phase of Delhi-Meerut expressway between the Uttar Pradesh border to Dasna,”a statement issued by the road transport ministry said.

The other two stretches - Akshardham temple to UP Gate and Dasna to Hapur -- have already been approved by the cabinet

The cost of the project is estimated to be Rs 1,983.51 crore. This includes cost of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other pre-construction activities, a road ministry official said. The total length of the road will be approximately 19 kilometres.

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway will be an access controlled highway. 31 traffic signals have been removed from the stretch.

While the Delhi-Dasna section would cost Rs 2,869 crore, the 46-km, six-lane Dasna-Meerut section of the expressway will cost Rs 3,575 crore.

Six-laning of the 22 km long Dasna-Hapur section of NH 24 will cost of Rs 1,122 crore.