NEW DELHI: The much-awaited Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, expected to reduce travel time by almost four hours, was opened for a trial run on Monday. Developed at an approximate cost of Rs 12,000 crore, the corridor will significantly reduce the travel time between the national capital and the city located in the Doon Valley on the foothills of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand from the existing 6.5 hours to just 2.5 hours.

The access controlled expressway, that has an operational speed limit of 100 kmph starts from Akshardham Temple in Delhi and passes through many districts of Uttar Pradesh such as Baghpat, Baraut, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli and Saharanpur and culminates at Dehradun.

The 210-km-long expressway was expected to be ready by March 2024. Speaking at the monthly interactive session—Delhi Dialogues—organised by TNIE, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways Harsh Malhotra last week said that the remaining work of the project had almost been completed and the expressway would be opened by the end of this month.

The project was approved in 2020. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation of the expressway in December 2021.