Length of highways in India increased 59 pc in 9 years: Nitin Gadkari

NEW DELHI: The total length of national highways in India increased by about 59 per cent in the past nine years - since the current government came into power, said Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said and noted as a result of this expansion the country now has the second largest road network after the US.

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Tuesday, Gadkari said the total length of National Highways was 91,287 km in 2013-14, which has now increased to 145,240 km in 2022-23.

He also said that, in the last nine years, the increase in four-lane highways rose about two times. In 2013-14, the length of four-lane highways was 18,371 km which has increased to 44,654 km now.

Secretary road transport and Highways Anurag Jain and NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav were also present at the press conference. Further, Gadkari said with the introduction of FASTag, there has been a significant jump in toll collection.

The minister further informed that the revenues from tolls rose to Rs 41,342 crore in 2022-23 from Rs 4,770 crore in 2013-14. The central government aims to increase the toll revenue to Rs 130,000 crore by 2030, he added. Gadkari said the waiting time at toll plazas has also reduced as a result of this.

"In 2014, the waiting time at the toll plazas was 734 seconds, whereas in 2023 this has reduced to 47 seconds. We are hopeful that we will bring it down to 30 second soon," he said.

Minister spoke about the transformative impact of FASTag on travel experiences in India, saying it has revolutionised the concept of toll payments, eliminating the need for cash transactions. This breakthrough, he said citing some research, has saved approximately Rs 70,000 crore in wasted fuel expenses.

For the northeast region, Gadkari said special emphasis is being laid on the expansion in the road highway network in the far east region, saying projects worth more than Rs 2 lakh crore are being carried out in the region.

On green initiatives taken by the government, Minister pointed out that his Ministry has utilised 30 lakh tons of garbage in road construction for the Delhi Ring Road project, demonstrating a proactive approach towards waste management and sustainable infrastructure development.