NEW DELHI: In a stark indication of how far India has to go in developing its highway network, latest official statistics reveal that around 78% of national highways are either one or two-lane affairs. The implications are obvious as fixing the imbalance can be key to literally speeding up India's economy through smoother freight movement.Over 14 lakh km of road is yet to be surfaced, over 11.5 lakh km being rural and project roads. State and national highways, which carry over 60% traffic, have less than 5% share. Moreover, the ministry has set a target to widen all national highways to at least two lanes. "National highways must be of some standard so that people can find the difference the minute they take NHs.

Source: Times of India October 17, 2016 00:19 UTC