NEW DELHI: The much-delayed Ashram underpass project, which has missed eight deadlines till date, was finally thrown open to the public on Sunday. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia inaugurated the underpass and said that it is expected to end the long snarls and congestion at the stretch.
“The underpass is a landmark step towards decongesting the roads and tackling the issue of pollution in the national capital. With the usage of this underpass, everyday 1,536 liters of diesel or petrol will be saved and 3.6 ton of carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced daily,” said Sisodia, who also holds the public works department (PWD) portfolio.
Appreciating efforts of the PWD, Sisodia said that it was a tough task for engineers to construct an underpass during heavy traffic.The minister said proper arrangements have been made to ensure there is no waterlogging in the underpass during the monsoon season. He said that the facility will be opened for public on March 22 but it could not be done because of non-completion of work.
A carriageway was opened on March 22 for a trial run, as the underpass was still under construction. The area which was a major bottleneck slowing down the traffic, now being fully opened, is expected to ease the traffic flow and cut down commuting time. The underpass is likely to benefit over 2-3 lakh commuters, who use the stretch to take the Mathura Road or to go to Noida via the DND flyway. The underpass is 410 meters long and has been built at the cost of Rs 77.92 crores, said officials.
“The four-lane underpass will decongest the traffic between Faridabad, southern Delhi and the Ring Road traffic from eastern circle of Delhi and Noida to Nizamuddin Railway station. This will further make the traffic smooth in the adjoining areas such as Bhogal, Jangpura, Nizzamuddin, New Friends Colony, Maharani Bagh and Lajpat Nagar. Commuters have taken a sigh of relief as the opening of the underpass will not only help them save time but also cause huge savings of fuel,” said a senior PWD official.