The Gurugram traffic police is planning to implement the phase 2 of the decongestion plan to manage the traffic flow at Shankar Chowk, officials said on Thursday. Following the lane segregation planned on a 1.5 to 2 kilometer stretch near Ambience Mall on the Delhi-Jaipur-Gurugram Expressway (NH 48), the authorities are preparing to channelise the vehicular movement on the expressway and nearby service roads.
Satyapal Yadav, assistant commissioner of police (ACP) traffic and highways, said that further decongestion initiatives would be rolled out in the next two weeks, once commuters get used to traffic streamlining measures introduced during phase one.
“We are seeing a significant improvement in traffic movement at Shankar Chowk and nearby areas, with waiting time reduced to what it used to be earlier,” Yadav noted.
Officials said during the next phase, vehicles heading towards Cyber City will be diverted through an existing nearby U-turn to streamline movement.
“To decongest Iffco Chowk, a nearby cut providing access to the middle lane along the carriageway, which eventually merges into NH-48, will be dedicated for commuters heading towards Jaipur,” a senior official said.
According to officials, phase two of Shankar Chowk decongestion exercise will also focus on streamlining traffic movement from Dundahera to Kapashera, giving a faster through-route for commuters who would otherwise weave near Shankar Chowk. Notably, the 2-kilometer stretch often faces gridlocks due to heavy vehicular movement.
When asked about reported drone surveillance at the Sirhol toll plaza to monitor traffic, Yadav said that aerial support is only taken whenever traffic management plans do not yield expected outcomes. “There are no such plans to deploy drones at the moment. However, if necessary, we would use them for the future roadmap to manage traffic flow from an aerial perspective,” Yadav added.