<p>Off late, the 165 km long Yamuna Expressway, has been in the news for about a dozen causalities in less than a month since its inauguration. Despite frequent pleas by authorities to commuters, to stay within the limit of 100 km/hour, motorists are indulging in over-speeding. <br /><br /></p>.<p>People who have been to the stretch, built at a huge cost of Rs 12,000 crore, say they can’t help but drive at speeds above permissable limits seeing the wide and smooth road! <br /><br />Even though speed lovers fall for the ‘world-class’ highway which has three toll plazas, they find basics lacking. Facilities like street lights, medical centres, petrol pumps and eating joints are missing from the E-Way even as authorities charge a higher toll tax than required. <br /><br />Metrolife talks to some who have already taken the ride and come back with tales to spare. Ravi Shankar Dubey, a project engineer in Noida, says the highway is well constructed, beautiful and the drive is even better if one has a luxury car.<br /><br /> “However, drivers of smaller cars might feel a little bubble and jerk. I didn’t find too many CCTV cameras either as claimed and over-speeding is so normal,” says Ravi, who has been on the stretch twice. <br /><br />While some rue the lack of U-turns until tolls arrive, others feel there is no need for them, as it raises the risks. <br /><br />Mohit Sharma, a banking professional, says, the highway is beyond expectations but the speed limit is less. “The E-Way is very good if we learn to drive carefully.<br /><br /> There are flaws which can be fixed though. There are no lights except at the tolls; toll charges are very high; there are no petrol pumps or other support systems if your car breaks down at a distance from the toll points.” One-way trips costs Rs 320 for cars and Rs 150 for two-wheelers.<br /><br />The highway also has agricultural fields at certain points and cows and dogs wander in unexpectedly leading to accidents. Shreshtha Chadha, a professional, says the view is pretty with lots of greenery and the drive is smooth too. <br /><br />“The only problem is, there is no U-turn until the toll. Besides, there are fields on the sides of the road. We had a narrow escape as three-four cows suddenly came in front of our car,” she shares. <br /><br />Bhuvan Rustagi, a CA, feels with almost everybody flouting speed limits, it is no wonder that so many accidents have taken place. “It is a fantastic stretch and its good that there are no U-turns because nobody goes on a expressway just like that. Most Indians have small cars and if they don’t drive on highways within the limit, there are chances of tyre burst too,” he says. <br /></p>
<p>Off late, the 165 km long Yamuna Expressway, has been in the news for about a dozen causalities in less than a month since its inauguration. Despite frequent pleas by authorities to commuters, to stay within the limit of 100 km/hour, motorists are indulging in over-speeding. <br /><br /></p>.<p>People who have been to the stretch, built at a huge cost of Rs 12,000 crore, say they can’t help but drive at speeds above permissable limits seeing the wide and smooth road! <br /><br />Even though speed lovers fall for the ‘world-class’ highway which has three toll plazas, they find basics lacking. Facilities like street lights, medical centres, petrol pumps and eating joints are missing from the E-Way even as authorities charge a higher toll tax than required. <br /><br />Metrolife talks to some who have already taken the ride and come back with tales to spare. Ravi Shankar Dubey, a project engineer in Noida, says the highway is well constructed, beautiful and the drive is even better if one has a luxury car.<br /><br /> “However, drivers of smaller cars might feel a little bubble and jerk. I didn’t find too many CCTV cameras either as claimed and over-speeding is so normal,” says Ravi, who has been on the stretch twice. <br /><br />While some rue the lack of U-turns until tolls arrive, others feel there is no need for them, as it raises the risks. <br /><br />Mohit Sharma, a banking professional, says, the highway is beyond expectations but the speed limit is less. “The E-Way is very good if we learn to drive carefully.<br /><br /> There are flaws which can be fixed though. There are no lights except at the tolls; toll charges are very high; there are no petrol pumps or other support systems if your car breaks down at a distance from the toll points.” One-way trips costs Rs 320 for cars and Rs 150 for two-wheelers.<br /><br />The highway also has agricultural fields at certain points and cows and dogs wander in unexpectedly leading to accidents. Shreshtha Chadha, a professional, says the view is pretty with lots of greenery and the drive is smooth too. <br /><br />“The only problem is, there is no U-turn until the toll. Besides, there are fields on the sides of the road. We had a narrow escape as three-four cows suddenly came in front of our car,” she shares. <br /><br />Bhuvan Rustagi, a CA, feels with almost everybody flouting speed limits, it is no wonder that so many accidents have taken place. “It is a fantastic stretch and its good that there are no U-turns because nobody goes on a expressway just like that. Most Indians have small cars and if they don’t drive on highways within the limit, there are chances of tyre burst too,” he says. <br /></p>
