India opens New Delhi to Agra expressway

The number of tourists visiting the Taj Mahal in India is expected to increase with the opening of a new expressway linking two of the country's most important cities.

The privately built route, which cost 120 billion rupees to build, covers the 100 miles from Greater Noida near New Delhi to Agra and took just under four years to construct.

India has the second largest road network in the world and officials hope the number of visitors to Agra's iconic Taj Mahal will rise due to the vastly shortened travelling time between the two cities.

The six-lane Yamuna expressway, which costs 510 rupees (around £6) to cross, is expected to be widely used by tourists, locals and businesses.

In 2010 plans were announced to add more than 17,000 miles (28,000km) of road to India's existing highway network in a bid to reduce congestion.