Government’s Vision ’47 sets target of 50,000 km expressways

According to Anurag Jain, Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), the ministry’s new strategy is to move forward directly on the Vision 2047 plan finalized by it, which will include construction of about 50,000 km of access-controlled expressways. Crossing the country. The scheme will provide commuters access to these fast expressways at a distance of 100-125 km from any place in the country.

peppermint The story broke in October on the government’s plan to prematurely exit the Bharatmala Highway program conceived six years ago and start building large-scale access-controlled highways in the country.

Development of expressways was important for the next phase of infrastructure development, as it would speed up travel, reduce fuel consumption and help reduce logistics costs, Jain said while briefing media persons about the ministry’s achievements in 2023. Said.

The government finalized the Bharatmala project in 2017, the same year the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved Phase 1 of the programme. The program was divided into two phases. The first phase aimed to build 34,800 km of highways that would connect many of the existing road infrastructure while providing better connectivity to various industrial corridors. Approval for Phase 2 of the program which involves construction of over 5,000 km of access-controlled highways with a total investment of ₹3 trillion was expected in 2023, as the ministry finalized a note to the Cabinet for quick approval.

It is now expected that all pending Bharatmala projects will be withdrawn, and a new cabinet note will be brought out on the Vision 2047 plan along with identification of new road alignments and completion of detailed project reports (DPRs) for greenfield projects. The new plan will also include elements of the Bharatmala program which also focuses on building a network of expressways across the country.

Under Bharatmala Phase I, contracts for 27,384 km of roads have been awarded so far. The remaining award of 7,500 km will now be aligned with the Vision 2047 plan along with the proposed construction under Bharatmala Phase 2.

Jain said that the length of high-speed corridors (access-controlled) in the country has increased from just 353 km in 2014 to 3,913 now.

Responding to a question on the slow pace of highway construction, Jain said more than 6,217 km of roads have been completed by December 2023, which is more than what was achieved in the same period last year. Also on the awards, the Secretary said, the period during which the election code of conduct will be in place will be utilized to complete the DPRs for various highway projects so that the awards pipeline can be substantially increased from about 10,000 km this year.

With regard to standardization of roadside facilities on highways, the Secretary said that new guidelines are being finalized which will help in improving the infrastructure along the already developed highways, while adding more than 400 roadside facilities in the current financial year. It is proposed to be provided by the end of. Year. Also, it is proposed to introduce satellite-based tolling on 10-15 stretches by March this year, with plans to expand further based on the experience gained from these pilot projects. Toll revenue from national highways touched Rs 18,450 crore till December against FY24 target 24,977 crores.

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Published: 05 January 2024, 11:38 PM IST