Govt to impose access-control to improve highway efficiency
Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has sent a proposal to the Centre seeking to upgrade certain important road corridors to access-controlled ones, to improve the efficiency of highway transport. Corridors identified include the Mumbai-Kolkata and Mangalore-Bangalore, Ludhiana to Kandla and Porbandar to Silchar highway routes. The move seeks to avoid congestion caused by smaller vehicles along these economic corridors.
Scheme can save Rs. 12 lakh crore
A transport ministry official said, "All missing or stressed links will be developed uniformly to avoid congestion at any point on such corridors...by improving existing roads and creating dedicated unidirectional service road..we avoid investment of about Rs. 12 lakh crore in building parallel expressways."
What are access controlled highways?
Access controlled highways are high speed corridors that seek to ensure smooth transportation of goods between two points. Access control mechanisms range from barricading highway sides to minimize animal trespasses on the road, to limiting access to certain classes of vehicles to maintaining a uniform transport mechanism along these routes. The highways will include service roads for smaller vehicles to use.
Need for the scheme
Currently, cycle-rickshaw, tractors and motor-cycles and other slow-moving vehicular traffic ply on highways, adding to traffic and slowing the movement of other vehicles like trucks and goods carriers. The Road Ministry said they sought to improve the efficiency of existing highways by reducing congestion and traffic delays. The PMO has already given the NHAI authority to start the plan.
