There was no ribbon cutting by ministers or populist announcements as the ambitious Agra-lucknow Expressway was thrown open tor the public without much fanfare on Friday morning.
“Initially only light vehicles will ply on this highway. Heavy vehicles and buses will be allowed to operate on this route in a month’s time,” a top government official told ‘The Pioneer’.
The Agra-lucknow Expressway, which stretches 302-km, was the most ambitious project of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and was completed in a record time of 23 month at an estimated cost of Rs 13,200 crore.
The six-lane Greenfield Expressway was inaugurated amid a spectacular airshow by eight IAF fighter aircrafts on November 21. The inauguration came on eve of the 78th birthday of Mulayam Singh Yadav where the entire Yadav clan including Ram Gopal Yadav, Shivpal Yadav and their family members were present giving a picture of unity in the family.
Vehicle will not travel the whole distance to Agra as the tarffic will be diverted at Shikohabad to the national highway, around 80 kms from Agra because of the ongoing construction of a rail over bridge.
“The only bottleneck we are facing is this ROB. Once complete, the whole stretch will be thrown open for public use,” the official said.
“The travel time between lucknow and Agra has been reduced to just five hours now. There is no toll plaza and commuters will have a free run till further orders,” he said.