While several link expressways are in the pipeline, four upcoming expressways and the development of industrial corridors or manufacturing complexes along the existing expressways in the state will be taken up on priority basis, the officials added.
The Uttar Pradesh government is set to build more link expressways to not just connect the existing and proposed expressways but also places of tourism and religious significance like the Jewar International Airport and the Chitrakoot Dham, officials familiar with the matter said.
While several link expressways are in the pipeline, four upcoming expressways and the development of industrial corridors or manufacturing complexes along the existing expressways in the state will be taken up on priority basis, the officials added.
The Purvanchal and Bundelkhand expressways are already operational in the state and the 594-kilometre (approved) six-lane Ganga Expressway connecting Meerut with Prayagraj and the 91-kilometre Gorakhpur Link Expressway are under construction. The proposed 14-km Chitrakoot Expressway will link the Bundelkhand Expressway with the Chitrakoot Dham.
Chitrakoot is not only of religious significance due to its association with the Ramayana but it can also potentially offer vast land for the industry and ensure a faster connectivity between different regions, which can go a long way in attracting big-ticket investments to the state.
In the last budget, the government had set aside Rs 235 crore for two proposed link expressways starting from Jhansi and Chitrakoot.
Another important proposed link expressway (nearly 60 kilometres in length) will connect the existing Agra-Lucknow Expressway with the Purvanchal Expressway, it is learnt. However, a detailed project report on this is yet to be prepared.
Similarly, another link expressway has been proposed to link the existing Agra-Lucknow Expressway with the under-construction Ganga Expressway through Farrukhabad district in Western Uttar Pradesh.
In a recent meeting, a proposal was made to connect the Agra-Lucknow Expressway with the upcoming Jewar international airport in Gautam Buddh Nagar for faster connectivity.
Once developed, these link expressways along with the existing expressway network in the state would offer faster
connectivity to people right from the National Capital Region (NCR) districts of western UP to the Bihar border on the east.
The government is also working on a plan to develop industrial corridors or complexes along these expressways, the officials said, adding that more than 30 such nodes have been proposed along the existing Agra-Lucknow Expressway, Purvanchal Expressway as well as under-construction Ganga and Gorakhpur Link expressways.
A maximum of 11 industrial corridors have been proposed along the Ganga Expressway — six each in Bundelkhand and Purvanchal regions and five along the Agra Expressway, the officials said.
The work on the Ganga Expressway is nearly 55 per cent over and it is likely to be completed by year-end so that it could be used during the 2025 Prayagraj Maha Kumbh.