Ashram underpass opens today on trial basis, finishing touches remain

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who took charge as PWD minister last month, had said the underpass will be opened to the public by March 22. A senior PWD official working on the project said: “The underpass is almost ready, and traffic movement will be allowed on the stretch partially between 6 am and 10 pm. In the night hours, we will complete work that remains. Construction is completely done, only roof, ramps and other work such as constructing footpaths, repairing roads damaged due to construction, and a safety audit is left.”

As per officials, the department is targeting to finish the work, including the safety audit, before March 31. “The project is already delayed and commuters are facing a lot of problems. So, we want to finish work on time. Once it is done, a final date for inauguration will be announced by the government,” said an official.

The underpass will connect Bhogal to Badarpur. “There might be some hiccups on the first day (tomorrow), but several commuters traveling from Faridabad, Badarpur, Ashram Chowk to New Delhi and East Delhi areas such as India Gate, ITO and Laxmi Nagar will soon have a smooth commute,” added the official.

Due to the construction, Ashram Chowk, Ring Road, CV Raman Marg, Mathura Road and inner roads of residential colonies like Sunlight Colony, CV Raman Marg, CRRI colony, Sukhdev Vihar, Lajpat Nagar IV, Amar Colony and others are heavily choked, even during non-peak hours.

Nearly, 3 lakh vehicles use this road daily. Work on the 750-metre-long underpass began in 2019 but was delayed by road closures due to the Shaheen Bagh protest, Covid lockdown and the construction ban due to pollution.

Experts, however, said that the underpass may not provide major relief as work on the Ashram Flyover extension remains. Moreover, the PWD has also started repairs on the Modi Mill flyover and Mathura Road, which are alternate routes for commuters to escape the Ashram traffic.

“There will not be major relief at Ashram Chowk due to ongoing construction work. A safety audit is always conducted before two-three months, but the department appears to be rushing to meet their deadline. Besides, there is no proper crossing facility for pedestrians. The PWD should at least provide safe walking facilities as it is a busy route. Besides, signboards and crash barriers are essential and important for safety of commuters as well as pedestrians,” said S Velmurugan, chief scientist at CRRI.

Work on the extension of the six-lane Ashram flyover till DND will take at least eight more months to be completed. It is meant to ease traffic snarls on the Sarai Kale Khan stretch and provide a smooth commute between DND and Lajpat Nagar and Lajpat Nagar to Sarai Kale Khan.