Proposed Airport at Jewar. (TOI file photo by Prem Bisht)

NEW DELHI: As all decks get cleared for the development of Jewar airport in the NCR by 2024, the highways ministry has started exploring possibility of providing a direct link to the airport from upcoming Delhi-Mumbai expressway. NHAI has been asked to study the possibility of developing a spur from Ballabhgarh on Delhi-Mumbai expressway to Jewar.

Sources said road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari’s office has instructed the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to carry out a detailed assessment on the road links to Jewar based on the traffic potential of the airport, which is likely to be ready by 2024.

“We will present the options before minister when he takes a review meeting next month. All possibilities will be explored to provide faster link to the airport,” said an NHAI official. TOI has learnt that the new link from Ballabhgarh bypass to Jewar airport could be of 30-40 kms and 80% of the road would fall in Haryana.

The NHAI has already prepared the detailed plan for extending the Delhi-Mumbai expressway from Sohna to DND Flyway via Ballabhgarh. The tender for this 59-km stretch will be floated in the next one week to expedite the work.

An official said the new spur from Ballabhgarh bypass to Jewar would also provide a better and shorter alternative to people to reach the new airport from Delhi. “One can take the Delhi-Mumbai expressway from DND and then will need to get out at Ballabhgarh before getting on to the new link. We also need to build new links to avoid the Noida-Greater Noida expressway getting choked. The plans must be ready quickly to meet future demand,” said an official.

Similarly, traffic coming from Gurgaon and Jaipur would find it convenient to reach the upcoming airport using Delhi-Mumbai expressway and Ballabhgarh-Jewar link.

