Delhi-Mumbai Expressway: With record construction rates of up to 40km a day, the Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has assured that the 1,200km expressway would be ready by 2022 rather than 2024.
Reassuring the industry of the government’s support, the Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari today said that infrastructure will play a key role in bringing demand back to the industry. The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, one of seven currently under construction, will help in decreasing logistic time and costs along key manufacturing hubs in the country.
HIGHLIGHTS
- 8-lane Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will reduce time by 12 hours.
- Distance to reduce by 220km.
- 75 rest-stops at 50km intervals on either side of the Expressway.
One of the key focal points of Gadkari’s address stressed on the fact that the government’s push for better infrastructure will not just help the industry boost demand, but also greatly reduce time and costs involved with logistics. To that end, Gadkari announced that the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will be ready for use in 2 years or 2022, two years ahead of the 2024 deadline. The 1200km highway is believed to cut journey times between the national capital and the commercial capital by over 12 hours with 8-lanes and the provision for 4 more in the future.
Gadkari stressed that Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is one of seven such express corridors being constructed across India and is expected to positively affect the industry as a whole. Not just from the manufacturing perspective, in helping reduce logistical time and costs, but also drive up the demand for vehicles. Once constructed, the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will be India’s flagship expressway with a 120kmph speed limit. In total, the expressway will cut the distance between Delhi and Mumbai by over 220km. The Rs 82,514 crore project will have provisions for 75 rest ways and highway malls at 50km intervals on either side of the expressway.
Furthering his address, Gadkari said these projects will also aid the auto industry in becoming the world’s foremost manufacturing hub. In total, the government envisions 22 such super-expressways or green express highways which are already in the works. India already is home to the world’s second-largest road infrastructure, and these projects are expected to add to the country’s repertoire.
