Delhi-Mumbai Expressway: World's Longest | 20 Sep 2021
Why in News
Recently, the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways concluded the two-day review of the work progress on the eight-lane Delhi-Mumbai Expressway.
- It will be the world’s longest highway once completed. It is expected to be completed by March 2023.
Key Points
- About:
- It is a 1380-km eight-lane expressway that can be expanded to a 12-lane expressway depending on the volume of traffic.
- It will start from Haryana's Sohna and will end around Mira Bhayander near Mumbai.
- Special Features:
- It will have wayside amenities – resorts, restaurants, food courts, fuel stations, facilities for truckers, logistics parks.
- A helicopter ambulance service for accident victims and a heliport, which will use drone services for business as well.
- The expressway is the first in Asia and only the second in the world to feature animal overpasses to facilitate unrestricted movement of wildlife.
- It will also include two iconic 8-lane tunnels, one tunneling through Mukundra sanctuary, Rajasthan and the second will pass through the Matheran eco-sensitive zone, Maharashtra.
- Significance:
- It will improve connectivity to economic hubs like Jaipur, Kishangarh, Ajmer, Kota, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Bhopal, Ujjain, Indore, Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Surat.
- It will result in annual fuel savings of more than 320 million litres and reduce CO2 emissions. The project has also created employment for thousands.