Delhi: Wazirabad-Burari stretch gets underpasses, subway

NEW DELHI: Two underpasses for U-turns and a subway will be constructed on Outer Ring Road between Wazirabad and Burari by Delhi government’s PWD to cut down on travel time, decongest the stretch and make it safe for users. Commuters going from northeast Delhi’s Gopalpur side towards Majnu ka Tila and ITO are now forced to travel in the opposite direction for almost 8km and take a U-turn at the Burari roundabout to get to the other side. Once this project is completed, they will be using the underpasses for either way, reducing travel time and also decongesting the roundabout. (See map)

In order to ensure that the traffic on this busy 12-lane stretch — six lanes on either side — is not disrupted, segments of these structures will be pre-cast at an open area and installed later. This method has multiple advantages. The first is that there won’t be any traffic disruption as the road will be dug up in three phases — the right side, median and then the left side, in that order. The second advantage is that this method is cheaper and will cost the agency almost half the amount it would have otherwise spent. And the third advantage is that it will save time.
A senior government official said this project would have taken over a year to complete had they adopted the conventional method. It will now take less than two months! This is the first PWD project in Delhi where this technique is being used. It it’s successfully implemented, it will be adopted for other projects as well.
These underpasses are being called ‘half underpasses’ because the stretch for entry and exit on either side will be at least three metres above the level of a drain that is running alongside the road. This is to prevent any flooding.
During peak hours, according to officials, the Burari roundabout gets clogged as hundreds of vehicles line up to take the U turn. That will no longer happen once the project is completed.
“Constructing an FOB costs at least Rs 2 crore and an underpass about Rs 20 crore. But unlike the expenditure on the other underpasses that we have constructed in the past, these two and the subway will be constructed at a total cost of Rs 35 crore,” said the official. “We will construct the subway at Jagatpur first, as that is required the most.”
The subway is being constructed at Jagatpur because several accidents have been reported from this area where people from both sides of the road cross abruptly. “Since both carriageways of the road are very wide, people are unable to safely cross the road. There are foot overbridges on this stretch too but people barely use them because they are at a distance,” said the official.
The road is almost 10 metres above the level of the service lane. Students attending coaching classes at Mukherjee Nagar have to cross over to the other side where many of them stay on rent. Hence, the agency has prioritised this part of the project. Construction of the segments for the underpass and their placement will be completed by March-end. The pre-cast sections for the underpasses are also being made and the work on all these structures will be over by the end of June, said the officials.