Dwarka Expressway likely to be completed in 3-4 months: Nitin Gadkari

A statement from his ministry later in the evening, however, said the entire work will be complete by April 2024.

Stating that India has an “inherent expertise” in increasing its population and its number of vehicles, because of which it is not possible to assure any relief from traffic congestion through wider roads and flyovers, Gadkari said: “I can’t give any assurance (on decongestion) but there will be relief. But traffic will increase again. People are working day and night to increase the population and the number of vehicles. So in my estimate, this Gurgaon road will get choked again in two years.”

Dwarka Expressway likely to be completed in 3-4 months: Gadkari

He also said he has a vision that skybuses could run between Delhi and Gurgaon and beyond so there is some relief in the traffic on the roads below. He also said he discussed the possibility of a tunnel from Delhi-Gurgaon with Delhi L-G VK Saxena.

Part of the Bharatmala project, the 8-lane access-controlled, expressway — the country’s first elevated one — is being built as a bypass to decongest the NH8 between Delhi and Gurgaon at a cost of nearly 9,000 crore.

Divided into four packages, Gadkari said the first, from Shiv Murti near Mahipalpur to Dwarka is about 60% complete. The second package from Dwarka Urban Extension Road (UER) to Bajghera is about 82% complete while the third package from Bajghera to Basai rail overbridge (Delhi-Haryana border) is about 93% complete. The fourth package from Basai ROB to Kherki Daula is about 99% complete.

He said 99% of work of the highway falling on the Haryana side, that is, packages 3 and 4, has been completed. While 18.9 km of the section lies in Haryana, 10.1 km lies in Delhi.

Gadkari was accompanied by Saxena, Union Ministers of State General V K Singh and Rao Inderjit Singh, and MPs Parvesh Singh Verma and Ramesh Bidhuri for the inspection.

Better connectivity

Gadkari said the project also includes a “3.6-km tunnel, the country’s widest 8-lane tunnel, which will make commuting from Dwarka to IGI Airport Terminal 3 possible in five minutes”. Around 65% work on the tunnel has been completed and it will also cut travel time to the airport for residents of Haryana and West Delhi, he added.

The minister said the expressway will intersect Pataudi Road (SH-26) near Harsaru and Farukhnagar (SH-15A) near Basai, and will also cross the Delhi-Rewari rail line near Gurgaon Sector-88 (B) and UER-II at Bharthal. He said it will also connect Gurgaon Sector 21 with Sectors 88, 83, 84, 99, 113 and Dwarka to Global City.

Moreover, it would provide direct access to the upcoming India International Convention Centre in Dwarka Sector 25.

It will have a fully-automated tolling system, wherein vehicles will be connected with the GPS and toll tax will be deducted directly from the bank account after the distance is calculated.