India is set to introduce stricter design and safety standards for new access-controlled high-speed national highways, with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) mandating the removal of median openings and at-grade intersections on these corridors.

Under the new guidelines issued, upcoming access-controlled highways will not have openings in the central median or surface-level intersections. The move is aimed at eliminating conflict points, preventing dangerous cross movements and reducing the risk of crashes on roads where vehicles can travel at speeds of up to 100 kmph.

The new guidelines also specify that these highways will not use raised concrete median dividers. Instead, they will have flush medians consisting of painted central lanes equipped with thick wire ropes or crash barriers.

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The guidelines are designed to create more uniformity in the planning and construction of access-controlled high-speed national highways and establish consistent technical standards across projects.

“The guidelines will apply to all upcoming four-lane and six-lane greenfield and brownfield access-controlled high-speed national highways,” an NHAI spokesperson said.

Under the new design provisions, motorists will not encounter median cuts that allow vehicles to cross or make turns through the central divider.

At-grade intersections, where two roads meet at the same level, will also not be permitted on these corridors. Officials said removing such points of conflict would help prevent dangerous cross movements and wrong-side driving.

The new standards are also intended to improve traffic flow and reduce the possibility of high-speed collisions.

The guidelines prescribe advance signage for exits to give motorists sufficient time to move into the appropriate lane.

Exit signs will be placed at 5 km, 2 km, 1 km and 500 metres before an exit. The standardised signage is intended to help drivers anticipate upcoming exits and make lane changes safely rather than making sudden manoeuvres.

The new standards will apply to upcoming four-lane and six-lane access-controlled high-speed national highways.

Existing examples of such corridors include the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, Ambala-Kotputli corridor and Trans-Haryana corridor.

These roads are designed to allow high-speed movement while restricting direct access from adjoining properties and local roads.

The guidelines come as the government works towards developing around 50,000 km of access-controlled high-speed corridors over the coming years.

Until now, there have been no separate standards specifically governing the planning and design of access-controlled high-speed national highways, apart from expressways.

The new document is intended to fill this gap by establishing dedicated norms for highways that are access-controlled but do not fall under the formal classification of expressways.

The new guidelines also provide for lane configurations based on detailed traffic assessments and projected future traffic.

The number of lanes will be determined after considering expected traffic volumes and other factors, including the number of bridges, flyovers and interchanges required along a corridor.

Depending on these requirements, the right of way for the new access-controlled highways will be 60 metres or 70 metres.

The new NHAI design framework is aimed at creating safer and more consistent access-controlled highway corridors as India expands its high-speed road network.

By eliminating median openings and at-grade intersections, standardising exit signage and tailoring lane configurations to projected traffic, the guidelines seek to reduce conflict points while allowing vehicles to travel safely at higher speeds.

Inputs from agencies