Scores of commuters between Okhla Industrial Area and Sarita Vihar would soon have easy connectivity with the construction of an underpass.
The Northern Railway is constructing an underpass under railway tracks near Sarita Vihar that would reduce the distance to merely 1 kilometre from the existing 9 km route.
This underpass is one of the largest and is being constructed using advance technique of box pushing with uninterrupted train movement.
The project will connect Okhla Industrial Area with Kalindi Kunj in Noida which is not only fuel-efficient but is likely to reduce the travelling time of motorists.
According to a Northern Railway official, the underpass crosses the Delhi-Mumbai rail route, which is one of the busiest rail lines in India with more than 300 trains passing through the stretch daily.
“While eight lanes will be used by heavy vehicles, there will be a dedicated cycle track that can also be used by other non-motorised vehicles,” officials said. The work is likely to be completed by early next year.
“The underpass in the railway area involves construction of approximately 180-metre long concrete boxes in three barrels. Two barrels mean four lanes, each for vehicular traffic, and one barrel for cyclists and pedestrians. Out of 180 metres, 57-metre length is under seven running railway tracks,” they said.
Officials said the construction work below existing railway line has been executed with the advance technique of box pushing, which ensures uninterrupted flow of rail traffic throughout the construction period. The technique, entire length of reinforced concrete box is divided into segments. The segments are precast over a horizontal concrete thrust bed, adjacent to railway embankment. The boxes are then pushed into the embankment one after another using hydraulic force created by jacks.