Mumbai Coastal Road project nears completion

The Mumbai Coastal Road project has a total length of approximately 26 kilometres, which includes three interchanges spanning 16 kilometres. Pic/Sameer Markande

The second tunnel of the Mumbai Coastal Road project was successfully completed on Tuesday at Priyadarshini Park near Breach Candy. As per the official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the first phase of the ambitious 10.58-kilometre-long Coastal Road, connecting Princess Street to Worli, is expected to be finished by November 2023.

During the completion of the tunnel work, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadanvis, and Civic Chief I S Chahal were present. The tunnel's length measures 2.07 kilometres, extending from Priyadarshini Park to Girgoan Chowpaty. The work on the first tunnel began on January 11, 2021, achieving a breakthrough in January 2022. The second tunnel work commenced on April 26 and was completed on May 30, despite some technical issues faced by the tunnel boring machine. The machine used for tunneling has a diameter of 12.19 metres, making it the largest in India.

Additional Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide mentioned that a portion of the project will be completed by November 2023, while the entire high-speed corridor will be operational by May 2024. This ambitious project aims to improve travel in Mumbai by providing comfortable and traffic-free commuting options. "This project is going to be an important phase in Mumbai's transport project," said Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadanvis.

The project's cost amounts to Rs 12,721 crore, with construction starting on October 13, 2018. As of Tuesday, 75 per cent of the project has been completed. The Coastal Road will consist of eight lanes, with four lanes on each side. Within the tunnel, there will be three lanes on each side. The total land reclamation area is 111 hectares, with 95 per cent of the reclamation completed so far. A 7.47-kilometre-long sea wall has been constructed to protect against waves, with 84 per cent of its work finished. The interchange work is 56 per cent complete, while the bridge work stands at 59 per cent.

The Mumbai Coastal Road project has a total length of approximately 26 kilometres, which includes three interchanges spanning 16 kilometres. However, the final stage of the project has faced some delays due to changes in the pillar distance. Initially, the distance between pillars in Worli was planned to be 60 metres. However, it was later modified to 120 metres due to concerns raised by local fishermen. These alterations have contributed to the extended timeline of the project's completion.