Varuna Elevated Corridor: Varanasi to get a new 43-km urban transport corridor

43.218-km Varuna Elevated Corridor to be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 10,998.32 crore

Travel to the airport to become significantly faster, saving considerable time

Varanasi, July 15 : The BJP's double-engine government is set to bring a major project to the ground to strengthen the transport network of Purvanchal through the improvement of Kashi's urban traffic system. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the Varuna Elevated Corridor, which will be 43.218 km long and is estimated to cost around Rs 10,998.32 crore. The project will help ease traffic in some of the city's busiest areas, including Chhawani, Varanasi Junction, Phulwaria, and Chaukaghat.

The area around the Varuna River is considered the hub of everyday life, but narrow roads, mixed traffic comprising pedestrians, e-rickshaws, cars, and heavy goods vehicles, along with the limited capacity of bridges across the river, slow down traffic movement. The Varuna Corridor will now provide relief from this congestion.

The Varuna Elevated Corridor has been divided into two packages. Package-I will comprise a 28.498-km stretch from NH-31 to Phulwaria Junction. It will include an 11.744-km six-lane main carriageway and 16.754 km of flyovers, ramps, loops, and service roads. Package II will comprise a 14.720-km stretch from Phulwaria Junction to Kashi Railway Station. It will include a 7.676-km four/six-lane main carriageway and 7.044 km of ramps. 

The project will comprise a combination of 15.78 km of greenfield alignment and 3.64 km of brownfield alignment. The elevated viaduct, built above ground level, will enable traffic to completely bypass congestion and disorder on the roads below.

For residents and tourists in Varanasi, reaching Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport has long been the biggest challenge. With the construction of the new corridor, travel time from the railway station to the airport will be reduced from 60 minutes to just 20 minutes. The saving of around 40 minutes on every journey will provide major relief to air travellers, businesspersons, and foreign tourists.

The corridor has not been designed only for through highway traffic but also with the needs of Varanasi's local residents in mind. Special loops and ramps will be constructed to provide direct access to some of the city's most congested areas, including Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, Chaukaghat, Phulwaria, and Varanasi Junction/Chhawani. The Chhawani area, which has long been synonymous with traffic congestion, will also benefit from a four/six-lane elevated highway, allowing thousands of vehicles to move above the existing roads.

The project is not merely an immediate solution but forms part of a long-term urban planning strategy. According to traffic studies, traffic volume on the Varuna Corridor is expected to exceed 59,000 PCUs (Passenger Car Units) per day by 2044. Keeping this projection in view, the government is constructing a four-to-six-lane elevated corridor today so that future generations inherit a faster, smoother, and congestion-free Varanasi.