New Delhi: Apart from giving a comfortable drive, the proposed Delhi-Dehradun expressway will curtail the travel time between the two major cities by 4 hours. This was informed by the Centre on Thursday. Moreover, the Delhi-Dehradun expressway will act as a catalyst for the economic development of the region. Notably, the expressway has been designed for driving at a minimum speed of 100 kilometre per hour.
More strikingly, the expressway will have an elevated 12-kilometer stretch to enable unhindered movement of animals. The stretch on the expressway will be Asia’s largest wildlife corridor.
Issuing a statement, the Centre earlier in the day said the road will cut the travel distance between Delhi and the Uttarakhand capital by 25 kilometres.
The Centre in the statement said that the Delhi-Saharanpur-Dehradun Economic corridor, whose work is underway, will reduce the distance between the two cities from 235 kilometres to 210 kilometres, and travel time from 6.5 hours as of now, to just 2.5 hours, once it is completed. More importantly, the expressway will be the country’s first highway where there will be a 12-kilometer-long elevated corridor for protection of wildlife.
As per updates from the government, the expressway will have a total 25 kilometres of elevated road – 6 kilometres in open, 14 in tunnels. The six-lane highway will pass through pristine forest areas. Furthermore, the Centre said the land acquisition and environmental clearance processes are in final stages.
All must note that the expressway will take at least two years to be operational. “The development of this corridor is expected to boost the economy of the region being served by the highway, especially boosting the tourism in Uttarakhand,” the government said.
