New Delhi, Mar 22 (PTI) After a delay of over a year, the Public Works Department on Tuesday started a trial run of the much-awaited underpass at the busy Ashram crossing in south Delhi as it opened one carriageway of the facility for commuters.
However, traffic snarls were witnessed in the area during peak hours.
The second carriageway from Nizamuddin to Badarpur is yet to be opened for traffic as officials said cleaning and finishing works were being done on that side of the underpass.
The PWD has opened the Badarpur-Nizamuddin carriageway of the 750-metre-long underpass on Mathura Road.
Despite opening one side of the underpass, there was congestion at the exit point of the facility towards Bhogal during peak traffic hours due to the narrow road.
Commuters travelling on the stretch said the trial run of the underpass has only resulted in shifting the bottleneck from one place to the other.
“Earlier people used to get stuck at the crossing but today the congestion was visible just at the exit point of the underpass toward Bhogal. The underpass here exits to a narrow road and a significant portion of the street is occupied by the vehicles parked there and a power sub-station,” a commuter Anukul Mishra told PTI.
The foundation stone of the underpass was laid by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on December 24, 2019 and it was to be completed in a year’s time.
PWD officials said the deadline was first extended to March 2021, then further pushed to June 30 that year, and to September 2021.
It was again extended to December 2021 and then to March this year.
Ashram Chowk is an important link between central and south Delhi and also with Faridabad. The junction connects the Mathura Road and the Ring Road (linking Lajpat Nagar-Sarai Kale Khan and the DND flyover).
According to data provided by the traffic police, around 2.5 lakh to 3 lakh vehicles cross the Ashram intersection every day during peak traffic hours.
Once the project is completed, it would benefit commuters passing through the busy Ashram crossing and ease their ride towards Sarita Vihar, Badarpur and Faridabad from ITO and vice versa.
Another motorist Vivek Dhankar, who regularly used the stretch to reach his office at ITO, said the traffic congestion was also visible because one side of the underpass is opened.
“It is good that the underpass is finally ready for use. People have suffered a lot in the last 2-3 years due to perennial traffic snarls at Ashram. Today the scene was slightly different as we could pass through the intersection smoothly. There was slight congestion at the end of the underpass towards Jangpura. We hope that the situation will improve after both sides of the underpass are opened,” Dhankar said.
A number of finishing touches such as shed work, painting, installation of signage, lane marking, lighting work among others are yet to be completed.
Construction equipments and materials were also seen lying on the Nizamuddin to Badarpur side carriageway, as workers gave finishing touches to the facility.
The ramps of the underpass on both sides are being covered with huge curved iron structures. Welding works of these structures and the construction of foot-over-bridges on both entry-exit points of the facility are underway.
PWD officials said currently the facility ha sbeen opened for trail between 7 am and 10 pm. The trial run will continue till the facility is formally inaugurated by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, which is expected by the end of this month.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had earlier this month carried out an inspection of the Ashram underpass in south Delhi and announced that the facility would be opened for the public on March 22.
“We will closely monitor the trial run and take necessary measures depending on results, if the need be. The maximum speed limit in the underpass during the trial run is kept at 40 kmph. We will carry out pending works of the project during the night,” a PWD official said requesting anonymity.
Officials acknowledged that there was traffic congestion during peak hours and said it was because of opening of only one carriageway and also due to some encroachment on Bhogal side of the underpass.
“The situation will surely improve once both carriageways are opened for traffic and the facility is formally inaugurated,” the official said.
PWD officials, however, said they are yet to get any date from the government for the inauguration.
According to PWD officials, the estimated cost of the project is Rs 78 crore. However, they refused to divulge the cost incurred on the project till now. PTI AKM AKM TDS TDS
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
Source: The Print
