1,156 Km Of 1,386-Km Mumbai-Delhi Expressway Ready: Ministry To Rajya Sabha

In July 2024, the ministry had informed the Rajya Sabha that as of June 2024, the physical progress of the work is 82% and cumulative length of 1,136 km has been constructed.

The ministry, last year, also shared that the revised scheduled completion date of the project was October 2025.

Last month, News18 reported that the progress of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway on five packages with a collective length of 140 km between Surat and the Gujarat-Maharashtra border is delayed, resulting in further push for the project deadline.

In its written reply on Wednesday, the ministry said initially, there were delays in the project due to slow progress by the contractors, force majeure and land acquisition issues.

“The government is taking all relevant steps to ensure the timely completion of the remaining length. The final cost of the project can only be ascertained post completion of the balance length," it added.

Once completed, the 1,386-km expressway will be the longest in India. Last year, News18 reported that even before completion, the partially opened Mumbai-Delhi Expressway is the longest in India, surpassing all the existing e-ways in the country.

The expressway passes through and connects cities in and around Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra with each other and national capital Delhi. The estimated cost of the project was about Rs 1 lakh crore.

This new expressway is expected to halve the commute time between Delhi and Mumbai, from nearly 24 hours to 12 hours, and shorten the distance. Currently, Mumbai and Delhi are connected with NH-48 which is longer (1,440 km) as well as congested.

The expressway is being developed with an 8-lane configuration with provision to expand to 12-lanes in the future, with a design speed of 120 km/hr.