Barapullah Phase 3: Days after the long-delayed Barapullah Phase 3 elevated corridor was inaugurated on Tuesday by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, its second lane, which is operational from Ashram and AIIMS to Mayur Vihar and directly connecting South Delhi to East Delhi, was opened on Thursday.
While traffic was relatively lighter on this route, however, congestion on the opposing lane heading from Mayur Vihar toward AIIMS remained severe for the second consecutive day, with commuters struggling through heavy delays along the 3.5-kilometre-long stretch.
To manage this, authorities placed barricades at the starting point of the flyover on the Mayur Vihar side. According to jagran.com, the lane is closed at irregular intervals using barricades as traffic spikes. However, once the barricades are removed following a brief normalisation of traffic flow, the congestion is back.
Traffic on the Mayur Vihar-to-AIIMS and Ashram route officially began on Wednesday, following a nine-year wait for the project's completion. While expectations were high that the corridor would ease commutes from East Delhi to South Delhi, a massive influx of vehicles on the very first day triggered a three-kilometre-long traffic jam.
By afternoon, the gridlock stretched from the junction connecting Barapullah Phase 1 all the way across the Yamuna River to Mayur Vihar, with many commuters only managing to clear the stretch after 4:00 PM. However, some reduction in traffic was reported in front of the Sarai Kale Khan bus terminal on the Ring Road following the opening of Phase 3.
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Why is there no relief?
The new phase links directly into the existing Barapullah Phase 1, creating major traffic chaos. Three lanes of traffic from Phase 3 merge with vehicles coming from Sarai Kale Khan toward AIIMS. Furthermore, traffic from Ashram, Lajpat Nagar, and the DND Flyway climbs onto Barapullah Phase 1 via a slip road near the cloverleaf, alongside merging traffic from the Mumbai Motorway.
Altogether, this results in five lanes of traffic converging at a single point heading toward AIIMS. To manage this influx, traffic near the slip road is alternately halted and released, which only worsens the gridlock, backing up traffic all the way to Mayur Vihar. Additionally, the new corridor has noticeably increased vehicle pressure at the Ashram intersection for motorists heading toward Ashram.
( With inputs from rais rais )