New Delhi: After a delay of over a year, the Public Works Department on Tuesday started a trial run of the much-awaited underpass at the busy Ashram crossing in south Delhi as it opened one carriageway of the facility for commuters.
But even as one side of the underpass opened for commuters, traffic snarls were seen during peak hours, with commuters saying that for now, the bottleneck has just shifted.
The second carriageway on the underpass from Nizamuddin to Badarpur is yet to be opened for traffic as officials said cleaning and finishing works were being done on that side. The PWD has opened the Badarpur-Nizamuddin carriageway of the 750-metre-long underpass on Mathura
Road.
Despite opening one side of the underpass, there was congestion at the exit point of the facility towards Bhogal during peak traffic hours due to the narrow road.
But commuters like Vivek Dhankar said there was definitely some noticeable change. "It is good that the underpass is finally ready for use. People have suffered a lot in the last 2-3 years due to perennial traffic snarls at Ashram. Today the scene was slightly different as we could pass through the intersection smoothly. There was slight congestion at the end of the underpass towards Jangpura. We hope that the situation will improve after both sides of the underpass are opened," he said.
PWD officials said currently the facility has been opened for trial between 7 am and 10 pm. The trial run will continue till the facility is formally inaugurated by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, which is expected by the end of this month.
"We will closely monitor the trial run and take necessary measures depending on results, if the need be. The maximum speed limit in the underpass during the trial run is kept at 40 kmph. We will carry out pending works of the project during the night," a PWD official said requesting anonymity.
"The situation will surely improve once both carriageways are opened for traffic and the facility is formally inaugurated," the official said. PWD officials, however, said they are yet to get any date from the government for the inauguration.
According to PWD officials, the estimated cost of the project is Rs 78 crore. However, they refused to divulge the cost incurred on the project
till now.
A number of finishing touches such as shed work, painting, installation of signage, lane marking, lighting work among others are yet to be completed on the underpass. Construction equipments and materials were also seen lying on the Nizamuddin to Badarpur side carriageway, as workers gave finishing touches to the facility.
The ramps of the underpass on both sides are being covered with huge curved iron structures. Welding works of these structures and the construction of foot-over-bridges on both entry-exit points of the facility are underway.