Over the decades, Delhi roads have evolved to cater to the ever-rising traffic in the national capital region. It looks like it is that time of the year again as Delhi government has now begun the project of expanding specific roads in the capital in order to remove bottlenecks as well as to make the roads friendlier for cyclists and pedestrians.
With the announcement being made by the Kejriwal government on Tuesday, nine arterial roads in Delhi spanning for 45 km will be redesigned to eliminate traffic bottlenecks. For this, separate lanes will be added to these roads for non-motorised vehicles.
The project will be initiated with the stretch between AIIMS and Ashram as a pilot. Work order for the same has been handed already, while that for two more such stretches - Vikas Marg and Narwana Road, will be given tomorrow. Rest of the work orders will be passed in November this year. Delhi government has estimated the total cost for the redesign to be around Rs 400 crore.
¡°All roads of Delhi will be entirely redesigned as per international standards¡ Nine stretches spanning 45 km will be redesigned on a pilot basis. Work orders for one road have been given today, and will be given for two more tomorrow. For the rest, orders will be given in November. We hope to improve the condition of these roads and tackle the problem of traffic congestion by redesigning them within a year. The cost for these nine stretches will be Rs 400 crore,¡± Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday.
Traffic congestion on Akshardham flyover in Delhi. (Representative Image: BCCL)
While Delhi undoubtedly has wide roads at present, there are several bottlenecks in certain areas. In totality, the efficiency of traffic movement on a stretch can be considered to be only as good as the bottleneck. This is because once the free-flowing traffic reaches such choke points, it usually turns into a traffic congestion, rendering the wide stretches ineffective.
Delhi government now focuses on removing these bottlenecks. Following that, efforts would be made to increase the efficiency of these roads. This will take into account streetscaping of these roads, with a goal to make them friendlier for pedestrians and cyclists alike.
City of Burlington
For this, a separate lane for non-motor vehicles will be created on these roads. This will help cyclists stay away from the regular traffic on the roads, potentially also encouraging more and more people to use cycles and electric cycles for commute.
Delhi has also been making efforts to curb the enormous air pollution in the region. Since vehicles plying on Delhi roads are one of the major sources of this air pollution, Delhi government will implement Odd-Even rule in the capital starting November 4. You can read about all the do¡¯s and dont¡¯s while these rules will be in effect here.