NHAI to connect Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway with KMP

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is planning to come up with an interchange to connect the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway with the Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway at a cross-section of Sohna, Palwal, Manesar and Nuh.

This will be a loop interchange that will connect the KMP Expressway with the Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway. The loop interchange will be located after a new toll plaza which will come up in Palwal. The interchange will be located at a cross-section of Sohna, Manesar, Palwal and Nuh.

The Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway will have two starting points for commuters — one on DND flyover in Delhi and another near Alipur in Sohna.

The loop will be been designed in such a way that the KMP Expressway and Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway can easily be connected. The interchange is being constructed in package-1 of Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway. Suresh Kumar, NHAI, project director, said, “The interchange will have four loops for commuters to travel from Delhi to Vadodara, commuters can use this interchange if they wish to travel till Palwal or Manesar. The loops will be designed in such a manner that there will be no stoppage for commuters.”

Slip roads will be constructed for commuters to travel from Manesar towards Delhi or Vadodara. “Commuters who are coming from Manesar can take a ramp road and then go on the loop-1 towards Delhi or they can take the other road and go towards Vadodara. This loop can also be used by commuters travelling from Palwal to Delhi,” said, PR Choudhary, team leader for package-1 of Delhi-Vadodra Expressway.

NHAI has also planned another loop to facilitate commuters who are coming from Vadodara and going towards Palwal.

Loop-3 will enable commuters coming from Palwal and moving towards Delhi or towards wayside amenities. “Designing a loop is necessary as this will ensure that cars can maintain a certain speed and still move towards their destination,” said Kumar.

Loop-4 will facilitate traffic for those commuters who are coming from Delhi and want to move towards Manesar.

NHAI officials said that a small portion of land which will be left in the construction of the loops will also be developed.

At Hasanpur, Sohna village, NHAI has also planned a centre for wayside where commuters can eat and shop on the highway. “At every 50km, such a centre is being made. All types of facilities, such as hotels, restaurants and others will be constructed along the highway. These facilities will ensure that commuters can travel hassle-free towards Vadodara,” said Manoj Kumar, chief general manager (technical), NHAI during a press briefing of project reviews on January 24 in Manesar.

Giving an insight into the roadside amenities at the junction, Nitin Gadkari, union minister of road transport and highways (MoRTH), had said that the purpose of these facilities will be to promote state culture and their handicrafts near the highway. “The hotels, restaurants will cater to the culture of that particular area. Further, there will be handloom stalls. I have told the khadi industry to open up shops and food plazas,” said Gadkari during a press conference in Manesar on January 24.

The logistical cost of trucks travelling on the Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway will go down once it opens for commuters. The MoRTH minister said that under the present alignment of Delhi-Mumbai highway, one truck can only make six to seven trips. However, after the Delhi-Vadodara highway is made, trucks can make at least 12 trips.

NHAI officials said that around 10 lakh trees will be put along the highway and water harvesting will also be carried out. Further, the entire expressway will be solar-power enabled. The project is expected to be completed within the next three years.

The length of Delhi-Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway is 1,290 km. In Gurugram, it will start in Sohna. “This expressway will have two starting points one at Sohna and the other at the Delhi–Noida Direct Flyway (DND). The entry point at DND has been made so that eastern Delhi and Western UP traffic can bypass Delhi can go straight towards Mumbai,” added Kumar.

Work on the ₹90,000-cr Mumbai-Vadodara-Delhi Expressway project started in September 2019 and is likely to be completed by September 2022.