With promises of traffic relief, new Greenfield highway to open on Dec 1

The construction has now been completed, the officials said, adding that road marking, signage installation and final touches will be finished within the next few days.

According to the officials, trial runs will be conducted on November 29 and 30, before it opens for public use from December 1. Limited vehicular movement has already begun on the road.

Experts believe the new Greenfield corridor will streamline traffic between Baddi, New Chandigarh and Mohali. It will reduce commute time and provide a major boost to industrial and commercial activity in the route and the region.

Engineers associated with the project said that safety standards were prioritized, with state-of-the-art technology, service lanes, modern lighting systems and advanced signboards installed across the stretch.

NHAI Project Manager Gaurav said, “The roadwork is almost complete. The pending stretch of around 100–150 metres near Kurali has also been finished. The premix work will be completed in a day or two, and the corridor will be opened for traffic on December 1.”

Rain delays and project background

The construction began in October 2022 by a Maharashtra-based company. However, heavy rains and flooding in Punjab resulted in missed deadlines for both June and September.

This project replaces the earlier proposed Kharar–Banur–Tepala Road, which was scrapped due to high costs. The new bypass is being viewed as a future lifeline for the Chandigarh–Mohali region.

High-tech automated toll plaza ready

NHAI has set up a fully automated toll plaza at Bajhedi village, featuring eight lanes in each direction and a separate lane for oversized vehicles.

Tolls will be deducted automatically as vehicles pass through, eliminating the need for staff at booths. Only two monitoring cabins have been built for surveillance.

Corridor to transform traffic & regional development

The new road is expected to:

• Cut travel time between Chandigarh, Mohali, Kurali, Ambala and adjoining hill regions
• Provide major relief to daily commuters on the Mohali–Kharar–Kurali stretch
• Accelerate freight movement for industrial hubs in Derabassi, Laldu, Baddi, Rajpura and Barwala
• Strengthen the logistics chain across Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh

Signboard errors noticed

Several signboards installed along the new corridor have been found to contain spelling and language errors in Hindi and Punjabi. For instance, Fatehgarh Sahib has been written incorrectly as “Fatehgarh”, and Landran is misspelled on multiple signboards.