: A “web” of elevated roads, with two lanes for private vehicles that will have to pay toll and one lane for buses that won’t be charged anything, are part of the Delhi government’s plan to decongest the Capital.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday that the Aam Aadmi Party government had in principle given its approval to two elevated corridors as a pilot project. The North-South and East-West corridors would be made with public private partnership. A presentation to this effect had been made to Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung.
“Like the BRT, which was on the ground but caused trouble, there will be an elevated BRT. There will be two lanes that will be for vehicles paying toll, which will meet the construction cost,” said Mr. Kejriwal, while addressing a public meeting organised by the Centre for Science and Environment.
He added that this would help make buses more reliable and efficient as they would not be stuck in traffic. The dedicated bus lane in the elevated corridor will have Metro station-like stops, and the gaps between buses and the time taken between two stops would be fixed.
“Once this is implemented, those who can pay can take the elevated roads. But, buses will not be charged any toll tax,” said the Chief Minister.
He added that if the projects start this year, they will take two to three years to construct.
“Next year, we can plan a big web of elevated corridors all over Delhi,” said Mr. Kejriwal.
The CM’s ambitious plan did not get everyone’s approval. Sunita Narain, the director-general of the CSE, was apprehensive about the proposal. “We don’t necessarily want that. We need to think about it in detail,” she said.
Elevated roads will have two lanes for private vehicles and one lane for buses
