Key roads may have to be widened for Central Vista project

NEW DELHI: The Central Vista redevelopment project, which is expected to be completed by 2024, will cause an increase in traffic volume on some important roads in central Delhi and these will have to be redesigned and upgraded. This has been revealed in a traffic impact assessment report, prepared by Tata Consulting Engineers Limited. It is part of the environment impact assessment report for the project.
The project envisages, among other things, converting North Block and South Block to museums by creating a new Central Secretariat for all ministries, a new Parliament House with increased seating capacity and a new residence and office for the PM and Vice-President. The report says that the project will add a significant amount of traffic to Dr. Rajendra Prasad Road, Maulana Azad Road, Ashoka Road and Shershah Road over the years.

It has proposed that Ashoka Road and Sher Shah Road will have to be upgraded to eight lanes; Akbar Road, Rafi Marg and Janpath to six lanes; and Dr. Rajendra Prasad Road to four lanes to accommodate the increased volume. The need for upgradation is pinned to the period stretching from 2026 to 2039.
The project is also expected to add to the traffic volume at three roundabouts – the one near the Vice President’s house, Panchmukhi Chowk and Raisina roundabout. The Sunheri Bagh masjid roundabout will, however, not feel much of an impact. Also, the India Gate area, Motilal Nehru Road, Red Cross Road, Raisina Road and Man Singh Road will not be affected. The report also claims that the overall traffic on the road network will be eventually reduced.
A pedestrian facility with a minimum of 1.8m walkable width shall be provided as per UTTIPEC (United Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (Planning and Engineering) Centre) street design guidelines. Crosswalks at intersections and mid-block locations shall be provided to facilitate safe pedestrian movement.
A source in CPWD, which is executing the project, said implementation will depend on the final approval from UTTIPEC. The report had been tabled before the expert appraisal committee in April.

Environmentalists and other experts say the project will cause traffic congestion and add to pollution. “As the report says the roads need to be upgraded and widened, it means the roads will carry increased traffic which will have a negative impact on emissions. When the number of vehicles go up, it will lead to an increase in pollution,” said Amit Bhatt, executive director, Integrated Transport, WRI-India.
Bhatt said it will also hamper road safety. “If there is more traffic, there are more chances accidents. The focus should be more on the promotion of public transport and restricting the use of private automobiles. In other parts of the world, historic cities are for people mobility and not for vehicular mobility,” he said.
Manju Menon, senior fellow, Centre for Policy Research, too was critical: “The traffic study reveals the logical extension of the flawed design of this project. The project is a major U-turn from the best practices of urban planning because it centralises all the offices at one location. This means that there will be major traffic congestion in this area with all its attendant environmental and pollution impacts from the construction period onwards,” she said.
Menon added, “What people also need to understand is that to manage this congestion, free movement of public traffic will be restricted in the area. Basically, this project creates a problem and then creates a bigger problem to solve the earlier problem.”