The Central Government has officially approved the long-awaited expansion of the Hyderabad–Vijayawada National Highway.

A new notification has been released to upgrade the existing four-lane stretch into a six-lane highway. As part of this, land acquisition responsibilities have been assigned to Revenue Divisional Officers (RDOs) in Telangana and Joint Collectors in Andhra Pradesh.

With this decision, the long-pending project has finally gained momentum. Once completed, vehicles will move more smoothly, and travel time between Hyderabad and Vijayawada is expected to reduce by nearly two hours.

National Highway 65 begins from Hyderabad.

The six-lane works from LB Nagar to Dandumalkapuram village in Choutuppal mandal are already underway, and the remaining sections will now be expanded.

The Hyderabad–Vijayawada highway, developed by GMR Group under the BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) model, is among the busiest roads in India.

Earlier, when it was just a two-lane road, accidents were frequent and severe. After several demands and protests, the road was upgraded to four lanes in 2009.

The 183-kilometer stretch from Sri Andol Maisamma Temple near Dandu Malkapur of Nalgonda district of Telangana to Nandigama in Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh, was widened at a cost of Rs. 1,680 crore. GMR constructed the project and has been collecting tolls at Pantangi, Korlapahad, and Chillakallu plazas from 2012 to 2024.

Despite the four-lane expansion, vehicle congestion and accidents continued due to increased traffic and certain technical limitations.

Currently, more than 45,000 vehicles travel this route daily, with numbers rising every year. Private vehicles now outnumber heavy transport vehicles, and the congestion worsens during festivals and weekends, often leading to long traffic jams.

Both state governments urged the Centre to expand the road to six lanes, and after years of efforts, the project is finally moving forward. With the latest notification, tendering is likely to begin by March or April next year.

Once the six-lane expansion is completed, the drive will become much smoother and faster, saving about two hours of travel time.

With no major obstacles along the route, traffic will flow freely, benefiting both transporters and daily commuters.

The upgraded highway is expected to significantly boost daily travel between Hyderabad and

Vijayawada.