“The key difference is not merely the addition of another road, but the creation of an alternative route for vehicles that currently converge on the Ring Road. It will be beneficial for the public,” said Additional Commissioner of Police D K Gupta.

For thousands of commuters travelling between Noida, Ghaziabad and South Delhi every day, the journey could soon involve one less bottleneck – Sarai Kale Khan.

With the opening of the Barapullah Phase III elevated corridor, vehicles travelling between the eastern side of the Yamuna and South Delhi will have an alternative to the congested Ring Road, particularly the Sarai Kale Khan stretch. Instead of taking the DND and then joining the Ring Road, some commuters can use the new corridor to cross the Yamuna.

Around 11 lakh vehicles from the National Capital Region enter Delhi every day, of which nearly five lakh come from Noida and Ghaziabad. Of these, an estimated 3-4 lakh currently use the eastern corridor, including DND, National Highway 9/National Highway 24 and Akshardham-Ring Road stretch to enter South Delhi. The Barapullah corridor is expected to redistribute some of this traffic.

“Vehicles travelling from INA towards Mayur Vihar, Noida and Ghaziabad would be able to use the Barapullah corridor to cross the Yamuna instead of coming towards Sarai Kale Khan and the DND Road,” a traffic official said.

The same will work in the opposite direction. Vehicles from Noida, Ghaziabad, Mayur Vihar and Akshardham heading towards INA and South Delhi can use the corridor through the Noida Link Road instead of first joining the Ring Road.

This could take some pressure off the Ring Road, which carries heavy traffic through much of the day. Unlike roads where congestion is mostly limited to morning and evening rush hours, the Ring Road remains busy because several major routes feed into it.

The six-lane DND is one of the main approaches to the Ring Road, which is four lanes around Sarai Kale Khan. Traffic from the Akshardham side also joins the Ring Road network.

The problem, officials said, is not simply the number of lanes available on the DND or Ring Road. It is also where the traffic converges.

At present, a vehicle travelling from Noida towards South or Central Delhi may take the DND before joining the Ring Road. Vehicles from the Akshardham side also enter the same network. Similarly, in the opposite direction, those travelling from South Delhi towards Noida and Ghaziabad use the Ring Road before reaching the DND or other eastern routes.

With Barapullah Phase III, some of these vehicles can avoid the Ring Road altogether. Instead of all the traffic heading towards Sarai Kale Khan, some will have another route to cross the Yamuna.