Delhi Ashram flyover update: Expect traffic snarls till February. Here’s why

The update comes even as PWD officials had on 18 October informed that the Ashram flyover extension project will be completed by November.

The six-lane flyover will end traffic bottlenecks at Ashram Chowk, a major intersection of Ring Road and Mathura Road. The total length of the flyover, including the ramp, is 1,425 metres.

According to Hindustan Times, the person familiar with the matter informed that the integration process between the existent flyover and the extension is in its final phase. This required the traffic on the flyover to be stopped temporarily. 

“The exact date of closure has not yet been decided as Delhi traffic police will issue a detailed traffic advisory before initiating the restrictions but the closure will be carried out soon in consultation with DCP traffic,” Hindustan Times quoted the PWD official.

A senior police officer confirmed that the southern range traffic police has issued its ‘No Objection Certificate’ for the integration. A senior Delhi traffic police official said: “The flyover won’t entirely be shut but traffic will be impacted, therefore, diversions are being planned accordingly”.

IMPACT- Restrictions on movement of vehicles on the flyover are likely to further worsen traffic movement between Delhi and Noida-Ghaziabad, which was already impacted due to construction-related restrictions, potholes and the presence of construction vehicles along the Maharani Bagh stretch of the ring road.

The flyover will be integrated with the existing Ashram flyover and will end near Delhi Noida Direct (DND) flyway.

After the completion of this flyover, lakhs of people commuting from Noida and other parts of Delhi to the southern part of the city will be freed from cumbersome traffic jams.

The flyover will allow passengers to bypass three traffic signals between Ashram Chowk and DND Flyway, making vehicular movement smoother.

The total cost of the six-lane flyover is ₹128.25 crore. Three lanes of the ramp will be for traffic going from south Delhi to Sarai Kale Khan and DND, while the remaining three will be for vehicles going from ITO and Sarai Kale Khan to south Delhi.

Once the project is complete, it is expected to help make the 9-km stretch from Moolchand flyover till Noida’s Rajnigandha Chowk signal-free. A subway for pedestrians at the Maharani Bagh traffic light is also being built.

In August this year, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia visited the construction site and said the flyover will be completed by November 2022. Earlier, the deadline to build the flyover was September this year.