The 594-kilometre-long Ganga Expressway, one of Uttar Pradesh‘s most ambitious infrastructure projects, is now complete and awaiting inauguration, with the state government targeting April 1, 2026, to
begin vehicle movement and toll collection. Construction of the six-lane corridor began in 2021, and officials say trial runs and toll management testing have already been successfully conducted.
Senior officials from the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) said the state government has approached the Prime Minister’s Office to request that Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurate the project. The formal opening is expected between March 25 and March 31, after which toll collection is likely to begin from April 1 to help recover the project cost of Rs 36,200 crore.
PM Modi had laid the foundation stone of the expressway in December 2021. The fully built corridor now connects Bijouli village near Meerut to Judapur Dandu village in Prayagraj, creating a direct high-speed link between eastern and western Uttar Pradesh. Once operational, the expressway is expected to significantly reduce travel time between Meerut and Prayagraj from around 12 hours at present to just 6-7 hours.
UPEIDA Chief Executive Officer Shrihari Pratap Shahi said the expressway connects to the Meerut-Hapur highway near Bijouli village and links with the Fafamau-Pratapgarh highway near Judapur Dandu village in Prayagraj. He added that construction of 1,498 structures along the route was completed ahead of schedule and that technical trials, including vehicle speed and driving experience assessments, are currently underway. Final decisions regarding the inauguration will be taken based on instructions from senior authorities.
The expressway passes through 12 districts including Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Sambhal, Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao, Raebareli, Pratapgarh, and Prayagraj, and is expected to boost development across the region. It will connect 518 villages to the main road network, improving accessibility and economic activity along the Ganga belt.
A key feature of the project is a 3.5-kilometre airstrip near Shahjahanpur designed for emergency landings and strategic use.
While toll rates have not been officially announced, sources indicate that cars may be charged around Rs 2.55 per kilometre, amounting to approximately Rs 1,515 for a one-way journey. Small commercial vehicles could pay about Rs 2,405, buses and trucks around Rs 4,840, heavy construction vehicles roughly Rs 7,455, and vehicles with more than seven axles up to Rs 9,535 for a single trip.
