New Delhi: A skywalk-cum-double-decker foot overbridge (FOB) at Madhuban Chowk, which will allow metro passengers to seamlessly switch between the Red and Magenta lines while providing pedestrians a separate route across the busy junction, is likely to be ready by Nov-end.The Rs 9.6-crore project, being executed by the Public Works Department, is around 60% complete and is targeted for completion by Nov 30 this year, said the chief minister’s office.“With the opening of Madhuban Chowk Metro Station, the facility will improve connectivity between the metro network and key destinations in the area while strengthening last-mile connectivity. A safe pedestrian route will encourage greater use of metro and promote sustainable, public transport-based mobility,” chief minister Rekha Gupta said.Madhuban Chowk became an interchange station in March after the Deepali Chowk-Majlis Park section, an extension of Magenta line, was inaugurated. At present, passengers have to exit one station and cross a busy road to reach the other station, located over 250 metres away.“Delhi Metro Rail Corporation is fast-tracking the FOB at the vital Madhuban Chowk junction to maximise public transit efficiency,” a senior DMRC official said.He added that this FOB has been meticulously designed under DMRC’s Phase IV to facilitate movement.The double-deck configuration effectively segregates metro users from pedestrians. The upper deck features an enclosed, paid-area interchange corridor spanning 183 metres in length to facilitate thousands of daily commuters in switching lines directly between the existing Red Line station and Magenta line station without exiting the system.Simultaneously, the facility integrates a pedestrian transit system on its lower deck comprising an FOB running 185 metres along Rithala Road, supplemented by an additional FOB leg measuring nearly 64 metres along Outer Ring Road. Both levels of the FOB are connected with station buildings, which have lifts and escalators.“Together, these lower-level channels offer an ultra-safe, grade-separated crossing to navigate one of northwest Delhi’s historically congested bottlenecks at Madhuban Chowk intersection, granting barrier-free access directly toward Rohini Court complex from both metro stations,” said the official, adding, “The FOB is being erected largely during late-night hours to minimise disruption to traffic.”The entire interconnected network is being built with pre-engineered heavy steel fabrications, deploying 650 metric tonnes of structural steel to withstand immense urban load factors. There are 30,104 bolts in the FOB, which will be six metres wide at both levels.The Deepali Chowk-Majlis Park section of the Janakpuri West-R K Ashram Marg corridor was inaugurated on March 8. The corridor is expected to be opened in phases during FY 2026-27.
