The share of ‘four-lane and above’ highway stretches constructed in India has reached its highest level, with nearly 43% of all NH stretches built in 2023-24 falling under this category. While the share of four-, six- and eight-lane stretches is marginally higher than a year ago, the pace of construction has increased by 16% to reach 3,297 kilometers in the current financial year. This trend is likely to continue in the remaining two months of this fiscal year, according to officials. The government has focused on building wider highways and expressways instead of solely strengthening existing stretches and widening NHs to only two lanes. Data shows that the rate of annual construction of highways with more than four lanes has tripled compared to 2013-14, with 3 times more four-lane highways being built. The length of NHs with less than two lanes has reduced from 27,517 km in March 2014 to 14,300 km. The Ministry of Road Transport aims to increase the length of four-lane and above highways to 75,000 km by 2030 and convert all NHs to at least two-laned highways. The budgetary allocation for highway construction has significantly increased, from Rs 31,130 crore in 2013-14 to Rs 2.8 lakh crore for 2024-25, leading to the rapid pace of construction. The overall investment in the highway sector, including private investment, has also increased from Rs 59,135 crore in 2013-14 to Rs 2.23 lakh crore in 2023-24.