Dwarka Expressway, UER-II: Delhi’s 2 Access-Controlled Roads Drive India’s Eway Strength To 2,712 Km

Last Updated:August 17, 2025, 18:49 IST

With these new stretches, the country’s operational expressway network has grown from 2,636 km in July to 2,712 km in August

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Saini during the inauguration of the Delhi section of the Dwarka Expressway and the Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II), in New Delhi, on Sunday. (PMO via PTI)

Delhi inaugurated two major access-controlled roads on Sunday — the Dwarka Expressway and Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II) — adding 76 km to the national highway network and bringing India’s total operational expressway length to 2,712 km.

These two additions are part of a broader push across India to expand access-controlled expressways. With these new stretches, the country’s operational expressway network has grown from 2,636 km in July to 2,712 km in August, bringing Delhi, Haryana, and Rajasthan together to nearly 60% of the total operational length.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has approved 5,110 km of access controlled national high-speed corridors and expressways across India. With the two new stretches, the operationalised length has risen from 2,636 km in July to 2,712 km in August.

Across India, Rajasthan leads with 964 km (35.6%), followed by Haryana with 604 km (22.3%) and Gujarat with 310 km (11.4%). Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh contribute 232 km and 224 km, respectively—about eight per cent each—while Telangana (153 km) and Karnataka (151 km) make up around six percent each.

Delhi, with the addition of the new roads, now has 65 km (2.4%) of expressways. Jammu and Kashmir contributes seven km (0.3%), and Uttarakhand has the smallest share with 3 km (0.1%).

Dwarka Expressway, UER-II

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the two expressways saying that connectivity across NCR will take a big leap forward with the inauguration of the Delhi section of Dwarka Expressway and UER-II.

“A boost to infrastructure in NCR, in line with our commitment to improve ‘Ease of Living’," the Prime Minister posted on X.

Connectivity Impact

The newly inaugurated sections complete the previously partially opened roads, inaugurated in March 2024. They cover 76.15 km and were built at a total cost of ₹10,946.55 crore.

Now, all four packages of the Dwarka Expressway, with a collective length of 29 km, are operational. About 19 km length falls in Haryana and remaining 10 km in Delhi with a total project cost of Rs 8,611 crore.

The Dwarka Expressway offered an alternate route for NH 48 traffic from Delhi towards Haryana and other states apart from offering a direct access to Yashobhumi in Sector 25 of Dwarka. It also provides alternate connectivity to Delhi International Airport through a dedicated four lane airport tunnel.

The Dwarka Expressway connects the upcoming Bijwasan railway station, UER-II, DMRC Blue line and Orange line and Dwarka cluster Bus depot. In future, it will connect to the upcoming tunnel to Vasant Kunj on the Nelson Mandela Marg.

While the Dwarka Expressway strengthens Delhi’s western corridor, the UER-II, often called the Western Ring Road, complements it by linking northern and northwestern sectors and providing seamless connectivity across multiple highways and urban nodes.

The UER-II is developed in five packages with a total length 75.71 km and capital cost of Rs 6,445 crore. Around 54.21 km of UER-II falls in Delhi and 21.50 km in Haryana. About 40 km of this road is the main alignment between Alipur and Dwarka, including the already operational Nangloi-Dwarka link.

The UER-II connects three major National Highways touching Delhi – NH-44 (Delhi – Panipat), NH-09 (Delhi – Rohtak) & Dwarka Expressway. The spur to Sonipat Bypass will decongest the existing NH-44 and provide connectivity from Delhi to KMPE and Delhi-Katra Expressway.

Apart from completing Dwarka Expressway and UER-II, two spur roads were also opened on Sunday.

The spur to Bahadurgarh bypass will decongest the existing NH-09 in Delhi and provide connectivity to Eastern Haryana – Rohtak, and Bahadurgarh – with southwest Delhi. This road link will also bring closer the connectivity of Delhi with KMP Expressway.

Future projects

These two roads are part of a bigger plan to decongest the Delhi roads that also include the Eastern Peripheral Expressway, Delhi–Meerut Expressway, and Gurugram–Sohna Elevated Corridor.

These projects have been developed under the comprehensive plan to decongest the capital, with the objective of greatly improving connectivity, cutting travel time, and reducing traffic in Delhi and its surrounding areas to create world-class infrastructure that enhances ease of living and ensures seamless mobility.

A few roads under construction include DND Interchange to Faridabad–Ballabhgarh–Sohna and Jewar Airport Link Road; AIIMS–Mehrauli–Gurugram–Faridabad elevated 20 km corridor to bypass the bottleneck at Dhaula Kuan; and a 5 km tunnel from Dwarka Expressway to Nelson Mandela Road; a 20 km extension of the Delhi–Amritsar–Katra Expressway from UER-II linking IGI Airport; and a 17 km extension of UER-II to Tronica City is planned to serve as an alternate route to Dehradun.

Nivedita Singh

Nivedita Singh is a data journalist and covers the Election Commission, Indian Railways and Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. She has nearly seven years of experience in the news media. She tweets @nived...Read More

Nivedita Singh is a data journalist and covers the Election Commission, Indian Railways and Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. She has nearly seven years of experience in the news media. She tweets @nived...

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August 17, 2025, 18:49 IST

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