By Our Correspondent
Lucknow: In its ongoing pursuit to improve road connectivity across Uttar Pradesh, the UP government, in line with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s vision, is not only developing an extensive network of expressways, but also building several link expressways to connect two or more long distance expressways in order to reduce distance as well as travel time between smaller districts significantly.
In a nutshell
- Link expressways connect long expressways, reducing distance between smaller districts
- Yogi government is actively working on interconnecting all the expressways
- Several link expressways, including Ballia, Chitrakoot, and Gorakhpur, are currently under construction
At present, in the state, apart from Ballia Link E-way (131 km), Chitrakoot Link E-way (15.20 km), Agra Lucknow E-way to Purvanchal E-way Link Expressway (61.60 km), Ganga Expressway to Agra Expressway via Farrukhabad Link Expressway (93 km), Yamuna Expressway to Ganga Expressway via Bulandshahr Link Expressway (84 km) are either under construction, or proposed.
Alongside these link e-ways, solar parks, electric vehicle charging stations, and public convenience centers will also be developed.
The Ballia Link Expressway will connect Ghazipur to Ballia, with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) allocating Rs 1600 crore for its construction. The Chitrakoot Link Expressway, linking the Bundelkhand Expressway to Ahmedganj, will start as a 4-lane road, with plans to expand it to 6 lanes in the future.
Additionally, the link expressway connecting the Agra-Lucknow Expressway to the Purvanchal Expressway will initially be six lanes wide, with plans to expand to it to eight lanes. The construction of this 61.60 km stretch will cost approximately Rs 4,500 crore.
Similarly, the link expressway via Farrukhabad between the Agra-Lucknow Expressway and the under-construction Ganga Expressway will initially be a 6-lane road, with plans to expand it to 8 lanes later. The estimated cost for this 93 km link expressway is Rs 6500 crore.
Furthermore, the Bundelkhand Link Expressway, connecting the under-construction Ganga Expressway to Jewar Airport, will also span 84 km, with a construction cost of Rs 6000 crore.
