Delhi-Mumbai Expressway: Delhi-Kota Stretch To Open Soon

Kota: Driving from Kota to Delhi, a distance of around 450 km, will now become easier, after the Kota-Delhi stretch of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is opened to public later this month. For now, vehicles returning from Delhi will have to take an exit near Kushtala (Sawai Madhopur) and travel via the mega highway to reach Laban (Bundi), till that stretch is opened, hopefully by March.

Sunil Yadav, the Regional Manager of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), said there was a demand to open Package Number 10 of the expressway, while Package Number 12 is also closed. There was also heavy traffic pressure on this route. Hence, senior NHAI officials have given consent, and made extensive safety arrangements, including to intercept vehicles being driven on the wrong side, before allowing traffic on one side from February. Home guards will also be deployed to prevent accidents.

Bharat Singh Joiya, Project Director of NHAI Dausa, said it will take some more days for traffic to be allowed, adding that lanes for different speeds have been designated for different vehicles on the Expressway, while slow-moving vehicles such as motorcycles, tractors, and three-wheelers won't be allowed on the highway. The maximum speed limit for vehicles is 120 km/hr.

Delay Along The Way

The highway is completely access-controlled. On the Kota-Delhi 4-lane stretch, traffic will flow in only one direction. For the return traffic, the section from Laban to Kushtala via Sawai Madhopur, through Packages 10 and 11, will be single lane.

There was a delay in constructing Package 10 of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway near the border of Sawai Madhopur and Bundi districts. This is why the journey from Kota to Delhi could only be opened to public two years after the expressway was inaugurated. According to Joiya, the work was delayed by the time taken to obtain the Forest Department's permission and to shift high-tension lines of the power grid.

The toll on this stretch will be Rs 700 for a one-way trip from Kota to Delhi. Drivers can also buy an annual pass via FASTag, issued by the NHAI at Rs 3000, which allows 200 trips, reducing the cost per trip to only Rs 15.

Mumbai Still Far Away

The drive between Delhi and Mumbai will continue to remain a challenge for a while more. In Kota district itself, an 8-lane, 4.9 km-long tunnel is being constructed in the Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve, due to which, vehicles have to pass through Dara Valley, a time-consuming stretch that often suffers from traffic congestion.

The tunnel via Mukundra Reserve will have two tubes, each with four lanes. Officials have assured that the tunnel work will be completed by April, enabling traffic flow by May.