NHAI explores options for repairing Hero Chowk flyover

Gurugram: A three-member technical committee, which is probing the damage caused to the Hero Chowk flyover, has given the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the option to repair the damaged portion by either working on the half of the road first and keeping the other two lanes open or by completely shutting down all the four lanes to traffic and repair the entire section in one go.

The committee has also recommended non-destructive testing of the entire flyover to check the strength of the structure.

The damage to the Jaipur-to-Delhi side of the carriageway of the flyover occurred on May 8 this year after chunks of concrete fell from the flyover leading to a hole on the surface of the road.

The damaged area has been barricaded since then to prevent further weakening of the structure.

In April last year too, chunks of concrete fell off the flyover, causing concerns about the quality of the construction materials used by the contractor of the NHAI.

As per the report submitted to the highways authority, which was accepted on August 23, the committee has given two options to the NHAI.

First, the deck slab may be dismantled in full width and recast, with no traffic allowed until the concrete has gained the desired strength.

The second option is to dismantle half of the entire width of the deck slab and recast the same, keeping the traffic movement open on the other half, the report said.

In the next stage, the traffic can be moved to the first half after the concrete has gained effective strength, while the rest of the deck slab can be removed and recast.

It has also recommended that weak spots in the span, as identified in the report, should also be strengthened.

Additionally, the authority has called for a proposal to carry out non-destructive testing of the whole flyover. It has also recommended the use of self-compacting concrete to repair the damaged deck slab on the flyover.