Skywalk not before May, metro commuters bear the brunt

Noida: A 400-metre skywalk project that is to tie the Aqua Line's Sector 51 station with the Blue Line's Sector 52 station is running two years late, and may not be ready before May.
A covered walkway that linked the two stations, pending the construction of the skywalk, was torn down last year to make way for the construction, forcing outbound commuters to cover the 400-metre stretch on foot under the summer sun.
According to Noida Authority's deputy general manager (civil) Vijay Rawal, except for some electrical works here and there, the project was nearly complete. But the stretch along the skywalk continues to remain heavily encroached by street vendors—stalls selling juice, lemonade or books—and autorickshaws. Relocated from outside the Sector 52 station, where autorickshaws and e-rickshaws would earlier huddle to pick up passengers, the three-wheelers now occupy the roadside between the two stations.
Gaurav Kumar, who relies on the metro to reach his engineering college in Greater Noida from Sector 34, saidthe absence of a proper interchange made the journey uncomfortable. "Passengers exit one station, walk to the second station and re-enter the second metro. The process is exhausting, especially in this heat and grime. We were also troubled during the rains," he added.
Construction of the L-shaped air-conditioned skywalk, spanning 420 metres and featuring a travelator skywalk, started in March 2023 and was to be completed within a year. The project was delayed due to multiple factors, including NGT's ban on construction during winter to check pollution and design changes. Originally, the skywalk was designed with a single-pillar structure, but during excavation, an underground metro cable was found, leading to a redesign with a two-column support system.