PM to inaugurate Delhi expressway to Devbhumi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to inaugurate the much-awaited six lane Delhi-Dehradun Expressway on April 14.
Once operational, it will ease congestion in the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi and reduce traffic on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway and other connecting highways. It will also slash travel times to the Uttar Pradesh border for commuters from east Delhi, south Delhi and Noida. A seamless travel corridor is envisaged for motorists from south Delhi, who can take the Nizamuddin route onto the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, connect to Akshardham, and then seamlessly transition onto the new Delhi-Dehradun Expressway via Geeta Colony to enter Uttar Pradesh. The expressway will have a designated speed limit of 100 kmph and cut travel time between Delhi and Dehradun from the current 6.5 hours to just 2.5 hours.
Stretching 213 km from Akshardham Temple in Delhi, the expressway passes through Baghpat, Baraut, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli, and Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh before ending at Dehradun. This six-lane, access-controlled corridor features seven interchanges, two railway overbridges, ten bridges, and fourteen wayside amenities to ensure high-speed travel with convenience and safety. The project also incorporates measures for environmental sustainability and wildlife protection, a 370-m-long tunnel near the Daat Kali temple, and Asia’s longest 12-km elevated wildlife corridor.
Built at an estimated cost of INR 11,970 crore, the project has generated excitement among residents and frequent travellers between the two cities. Improved connectivity is expected to boost tourism in Uttarakhand, especially to destinations near Dehradun and Mussoorie.
Beautification work is underway along parts of the corridor, including painting roadside walls, cleaning and polishing streetlight poles, and checking surveillance cameras. Officials from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) recently inspected safety standards along a 74-km stretch, which includes the 12-km wildlife corridor. NHAI Project Director Narendra Singh and his team visited multiple locations in Saharanpur district, reviewed progress with ground officials, and issued directions, signalling that the expressway is nearing completion. The route will also include a spur to Haridwar and connect to the Char Dham Highway, enhancing access to Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh’s hill stations and pilgrimage sites.NHAI officials added the construction was executed in four phases.
