Illustration: NewsPlainly. Not a photograph of the event.
हिन्दी में सारांश Summary in Hindi
- ंडरपास 5 नवंबर 2026 को सुबह 6 बजे से ट्रायल के लिए खुलेगा; इंडियन एक्सप्रेस के मुताबिक ट्रायल 8 नवंबर रात 10 बजे तक चलेगा।
- नुसार स्थायी रूप से खोलने की तारीख तय नहीं है।
- ंडरपास ताज हाईवे के साथ चलते हुए ग्रेटर नोएडा के सूरजपुर को गौर सिटी से जोड़ता है।
বাংলায় সারাংশ Summary in Bangla
- নুযায়ী ট্রায়াল চলবে ৮ নভেম্বর রাত ১০টা পর্যন্ত।
- ট্রায়ালে যে ত্রুটি ধরা পড়বে তা আগে সারানো হবে; ইন্ডিয়ান এক্সপ্রেস, জাগরণ ও আজতক জানিয়েছে, স্থায়ীভাবে খোলার তারিখ এখনও ঠিক হয়নি।
- প্রায় ৭০০ মিটার লম্বা এই আন্ডারপাস তাজ হাইওয়ের পাশ দিয়ে গ্রেটার নয়ডার সুরজপুরকে গৌর সিটির সঙ্গে যুক্ত করেছে।
Why it matters
For people in Gaur City and the housing societies around it, the junction has meant long peak-hour queues through more than two years of digging. The trial is the first chance to drive through, but officials expect the underpass to carry only part of the junction's traffic, so the smaller roundabout above will still matter.
The Gaur Chowk underpass in Greater Noida West opens to traffic for a trial run on Thursday, 5 November 2026, the Greater Noida authority has said. The trial starts at 6 am and continues until 10 pm on Sunday, 8 November, an officer told The Indian Express on 4 November, while Dainik Jagran and AajTak described it as a three-day trial. Faults found during the trial will be fixed before the underpass opens to the public for good.
The underpass runs beneath Gaur Chowk, also known as Char Murti chowk, the busy roundabout outside Gaur City in Noida Extension. Officials quoted by the Indian Express have put the traffic through the junction at about one lakh vehicles a day, and construction since July 2024 has added to the jams there, the Indian Express and Hindustan Times have reported.
What happens during the Gaur Chowk underpass trial run
For the trial, vehicles will be allowed through the Gaur Chowk underpass so the authority can see how it copes with real traffic. Authority officials told Dainik Jagran that safety, signage, lighting, drainage and traffic management would all be checked. The authority has asked drivers to take care and follow traffic rules while the trial is on, Jagran reported.
Amar Ujala reported that traffic will start moving through the Gaur City underpass from the Hanuman Mandir rotary towards Tigri and Ghaziabad. Sumit Yadav, additional chief executive officer (ACEO) of the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA), told the paper that the six-lane underpass was being opened for a trial so that any shortcomings could be put right in time. The Indian Express describes the structure as eight lanes wide; the ACEO’s remark and the other reports read say six.
A permanent opening date is less clear. The Indian Express, Jagran and AajTak all reported on 4 November that no date had been fixed for opening the Gaur Chowk underpass permanently. Amar Ujala reported that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will formally inaugurate it on 12 November, after which it will open fully, though the paper’s own headline said only that he may do so.
Which roads the underpass links in Greater Noida West
The underpass is about 700 metres long and runs parallel to the Taj Highway, connecting Surajpur in Greater Noida with Gaur City, according to the Indian Express. Hindustan Times reported in May that it runs alongside the 60-metre road on the Surajpur to Ghaziabad route, so vehicles travelling between Greater Noida, Gaur City and the Delhi-Meerut Expressway can skip the junction.
Char Murti chowk takes traffic from several directions at once. Jagran listed the load coming from the Char Murti roundabout, Kisan Chowk, the Ek Murti roundabout and vehicles heading towards Noida. ACEO Yadav told Amar Ujala that vehicles coming from Techzone-4, the FNG road (Faridabad-Noida-Ghaziabad), Sector 1, Sector 2 and the Surajpur-Kasna road will be able to go straight towards Ghaziabad, Tigri and Gaur City without getting stuck in the jam. He estimated that about five lakh people would benefit directly.
The Gaur City underpass will not take all Greater Noida West traffic. A senior official had told the Indian Express that of the roughly one lakh vehicles crossing the junction daily, about 30,000 are expected to use the underpass. The rest still meet at the roundabout above, which the authority has made smaller so that vehicles on the 130-metre road get extra room, Amar Ujala reported.
What changes for commuters at Char Murti chowk
The table below sums up what the reports read say changes for Greater Noida West traffic once the Gaur Chowk underpass is in use. It is not a traffic police advisory.
| Trip or spot | During construction | From the trial |
|---|---|---|
| Surajpur, Techzone-4, Sectors 1 and 2 towards Gaur City, Tigri, Ghaziabad | Through the Gaur Chowk roundabout at road level | Straight through the underpass, the ACEO told Amar Ujala |
| Main road at the junction | Main carriageway traffic moved to service lanes on both sides of the Taj Highway (HT, May 2026) | The reports read do not set out new diversions |
| Roundabout above | Full-size Char Murti roundabout | Made smaller to free space on the 130-metre road (Amar Ujala) |
The Gaur City underpass has a roof shed to keep out rain and prevent waterlogging, plus lighting so it does not go dark at night, Amar Ujala reported. Its walls carry paintings of India Gate, Qutub Minar, the Buddha and Chandrayaan, Dainik Bhaskar reported on 3 November.
Two practical points are not settled in the reports read: whether traffic will run in both directions during the trial, and whether Gautam Buddh Nagar traffic police will change the current diversions around Char Murti chowk. None of the four reports from 4 November included a traffic police route plan for the trial.
Why the Gaur Chowk underpass took more than two years
The Gaur Chowk underpass project has missed several targets. This timeline is built from the reports read:
- July 2024: work begins with an 18-month deadline, according to Hindustan Times, Bhaskar and AajTak. On that schedule it would have been ready around January 2026 (NewsPlainly’s calculation); Amar Ujala says it should have opened at the start of 2026.
- September 2025: the main slab is finished, letting vehicles move from Noida to Gaur Chowk and Ek Murti, Hindustan Times reported.
- May 2026: the authority says 20 of the project’s 26 sections are done and names 15 August as the likely opening date (Hindustan Times, 12 May).
- August 2026: the August date is missed; officials tell the Indian Express the opening has moved to late October, close to Diwali.
- 3 November 2026: main construction is complete and finishing work is on, Dainik Bhaskar reported.
- 5 to 8 November 2026: trial run, according to the officer quoted by the Indian Express.
- 12 November 2026: formal inauguration by the Chief Minister, according to Amar Ujala.
Officials gave several reasons for the delays. Bhaskar listed curbs under GRAP (the Graded Response Action Plan that restricts construction when air quality in Delhi and the National Capital Region turns bad), rain, the shifting of underground utility lines and work on the ramps. The Indian Express reported a bitumen shortage felt around April and supply chain trouble linked to the West Asia conflict. Because traffic never stopped, crews could work on only small stretches at a time, mostly between 11 pm and 5 am, officials told the Indian Express. Amar Ujala reported that the deadline was extended three times.
How the cost grew from ₹60 crore to about ₹100 crore
Reports give different costs for the Gaur Chowk underpass: ₹82 crore in the Indian Express, about ₹92 crore in AajTak and Bhaskar, and about ₹100 crore in Amar Ujala, whose breakdown explains the gap.
| Stage | Cost | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| First estimate | About ₹60 crore | Initial project estimate |
| Tender | ₹82 crore | Revised during the tender process |
| With utilities | About ₹92 crore | Shifting power lines and other utilities added |
| With roof shed | About ₹100 crore | A ₹7 crore shed added late in the work |
On those figures, the cost has risen by about ₹40 crore, or about two thirds, over the first estimate (NewsPlainly’s calculation: ₹100 crore minus ₹60 crore, divided by ₹60 crore).
This report relies on the authority’s statements as carried by the Indian Express, Amar Ujala, Dainik Jagran and AajTak on 4 November; the Greater Noida authority’s website did not load when NewsPlainly checked it that evening.
For more Uttar Pradesh news, including Noida and Greater Noida, see the Uttar Pradesh page.
Frequently asked questions
When will the Gaur Chowk underpass open?
It opens for a trial run from 6 am on 5 November 2026. An officer told the Indian Express the trial lasts until 10 pm on 8 November. Amar Ujala reported a formal inauguration on 12 November; other reports said no permanent opening date was fixed.
Which roads does the Gaur Chowk underpass connect?
It runs about 700 metres beneath Gaur Chowk (Char Murti chowk), parallel to the Taj Highway, linking Surajpur in Greater Noida with Gaur City and the route towards Tigri, Ghaziabad and the Delhi-Meerut Expressway.
How much did the Gaur Chowk underpass cost?
Figures differ by report: ₹82 crore (Indian Express), about ₹92 crore (AajTak, Bhaskar) and about ₹100 crore (Amar Ujala, including a ₹7 crore roof shed). The first estimate was about ₹60 crore.
Why was the underpass delayed?
Officials cited GRAP construction curbs, rain, shifting of underground utilities, a bitumen shortage and work limited to small night-time stretches because of traffic. On its 18-month schedule it was due around January 2026 (NewsPlainly's calculation); the next target was 15 August.