U-turn before Kherki Daula toll triggers snarls on expressway

Several commuters coming from the Jaipur side and moving towards Gurgaon have started taking the U-turn before the Kherki Daula toll plaza and going on to take the Sector 76-77 road to avoid paying the toll tax. This is hindering the movement of vehicles on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway going straight from the Gurgaon to Jaipur and the service road, causing traffic jams in the area.
Commuters who cross the toll plaza daily said that the U-turn was causing traffic problems and needed to be closed down to maintain smooth flow of traffic on the stretch. Amresh Mishra, a resident of Sector 83 said, “Some commuters take the U-turn to avoid paying the toll tax. Firstly, the government is not removing the toll plaza. Secondly, after several delays, alternate roads have been made so that commuters can bypass the toll plaza. But after opening the roads, the authorities aren’t being able to control traffic movement.”

Some residents complained that the authorities were not looking after the interests of those living in the new sectors. Pinky Singh, a resident of Sector 83 said, “The state government and authorities concerned are not doing enough for New Gurgaon residents. Traffic management is so poor that jams have become a part of our daily lives.” Residents added that more than smaller vehicles, heavy trucks were using the bypass road and holding up other vehicles.

Toll plaza concessionaire MCEPL has asked NHAI to close the U-turn. CEO S Raghuraman said, “We have told NHAI (Jaipur) to close the U-turn but nothing has been done. Due to this U-turn, many vehicles get caught in unnecessary traffic jams. Heavy trucks take time to turn and block the path of other vehicles.”

There is a similar U-turn on the other side of the Kherki Daula toll plaza and MCEPL has written to NHAI to shut that one too.

NHAI officials said that the closure of the U-turn on the Jaipur side was being considered. “We know that many vehicles are using the Sector 76-77 road and that is not right. Many commuters are using the U-turn to avoid paying the toll tax. The closure of the U-turn is on our list of things to do and we are going through the pros and cons and then a decision will be taken,” said a senior NHAI official.

A Gurgaon traffic official said that they were looking into the matter. “The issue of the U-turn is being monitored and we’ll soon come up with a solution,” he said.