Minister of State for Corporate Affairs and Road Transport & Highways Shri Harsh Malhotra laid foundation stones for two Foot Over Bridges (FOBs) on the Delhi-Saharanpur-Dehradun Expressway (NH-709B) in East Delhi. The FOBs are located at Geeta Colony/Gandhi Nagar (Km 5+100) and Ramesh Park, Laxmi Nagar (Km 2+800) and will be equipped with lift facilities to enhance pedestrian safety, accessibility, and mobility for senior citizens, persons with mobility challenges, students, and workers.
An additional third Foot Over Bridge has been approved at Km 10+800 near Bhajanpura, Garhi Mendu, bringing the total project cost for all three FOBs to ₹12.8 crore. The initiative aims to reduce pedestrian-vehicle interaction and facilitate uninterrupted vehicular movement in densely populated areas of East Delhi.
The Minister also highlighted several complementary infrastructure developments: parking facilities have been started under the elevated portion of the Delhi section, a comprehensive beautification plan for the Delhi stretch of NH-709B (Phase-I) is in progress, and solar panels are being installed along the elevated stretch to promote renewable energy usage for highway requirements. These initiatives are designed to optimize space utilization beneath the elevated corridor, improve parking management, provide public amenities including EV charging and toilets, support traffic decongestion, enhance corridor aesthetics, reduce dependence on conventional power sources, and contribute toward lowering carbon emissions in alignment with India's Net Zero by 2070 vision.