Two lanes of Dwarka e-way shut for repairing expansion joint

Two lanes of the Dwarka Expressway on the Gurugram-to-Delhi side have been closed to traffic near the Bajghera exit after an expansion joint was found damaged, officials said on Monday. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has decided to replace the joint, with repairs expected to be completed within a week, they said, adding that the two lanes of the stretch will be made operational as soon as the repair work is finished.

An NHAI official, aware of the situation, said the steel bars of the expansion joint had been damaged twice despite multiple repairs on Saturday and Sunday. “The expansion joint at this spot has been damaged. We have already procured a new expansion joint, and the damaged portion will be replaced within a week,” the official said.

The NHAI stated that the issue concerns package 3 of Dwarka Expressway at kilometre 15. “There was an accident of a truck and car on 31.01.2025 at this location, which damaged the expansion joint. The contractor immediately barricaded the area for temporary rectification. As per the advice of M/s Sanfield, temporary measures have been taken up. M/s Sanfield will visit the site tomorrow, and permanent rectification will follow,” it said. The authority engineer informed that “the concrete was chipped by the contractor to assess damage to the expansion joint and the box,” the statement added.

HT’s site visit on Monday afternoon revealed that the rubber portion of the joint was missing and that the iron girders had undergone repeated welding.   A traffic marshal deployed at the location confirmed that two lanes had been barricaded partially to ensure commuter safety. “The iron girders have been repaired multiple times, but due to constant traffic movement, they keep getting damaged,” he said.

To prevent any untoward incident, the highway authority has installed barricades and warning tapes to alert fast-moving vehicles about the lane closure, officials said. Currently, traffic is flowing through the remaining two lanes of the carriageway. The Bajghera exit is a crucial link for commuters accessing residential areas on both sides of the expressway, they added.

An expansion joint, made of rubber and steel, is a structural component installed between concrete sections of a flyover. It allows for the natural contraction and expansion of concrete due to temperature changes, ensuring the integrity of the structure and preventing cracks, officials said.

This is not the first instance of an expansion joint failure on Dwarka Expressway. In January this year, an expansion joint near the Yashobhumi Convention Centre in Dwarka was also found damaged in the Delhi section of the expressway, which is still under construction. The damaged joint was subsequently replaced, according to officials.

The 19-kilometre Gurugram section of the Dwarka Expressway was made operational in March 2024. Built at a cost of ₹4,100 crore, it forms part of the larger 29-kilometre expressway project, which has an estimated cost of nearly ₹10,000 crore.