In a move to connect the national capital with the hill city of Uttarakhand, Dehradun, the central government has given its in-principal nod to an elevated expressway between these two cities. Once operational, the distance between New Delhi and Dehradun will come down to 180km, from 248kms. The new connectivity is expected to boost tourism and trade in the state as Dehradun lies in proximity to some of the popular hill stations in North India including Mussoorie, Kanatal, Dhanaulti etc. The expressway is expected to get operational in next three-five years.
Delhi-Dehradun Expressway new route
According to the plan, the entire route will be elevated except at a small stretch at Dehradun outskirts, near Rajaji National Park, where a tunnel will be constructed. The new route will pass through Ganeshpur, Mohand, and Ashkrodi in Uttarkhand and Saharanpur, Baghpat and Loni in Uttar Pradesh. A part of highway will pass through Uttar Pradesh for which environmental and land approvals will have to be obtained. The project will be executed by the National Highways Authority of India.
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Impact of Delhi-Dehradun Expressway on Dehradun’s real estateÂ
Once fast-tracked connectivity is operational between Delhi and Dehradun, the real estate market of the city which is mostly a second home destination, might take off more actively. The city is gearing up for apartment culture where the old independent houses are giving way to township sized projects.
The work on infrastructure is also in progress as recently the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee signed an MoU with Dehradun Smart City Ltd to improve public transport, traffic management and drainage system design, in Dehradun. Also, IIT-R will provide services and research on different aspects of urban planning, including electric mobility plan, public transport system, traffic plan, energy saving plans, storm water drainage, water drainage plan and water harvesting, to DSCL.
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Delhi-Dehradun Expressway: Latest update
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, during her Union Budget 2021 presentation, on February 1, 2021, said that the Delhi-Dehradun corridor would be initiated by March 2021, while construction would start in the next financial year (FY 2021-22). The FM also announced that the Expressway would have advanced traffic management systems, with speed radars, variable message signboards and GPS-enabled recovery vans.
