Test Drive: How Mumbai Coastal Road will create new bottlenecks

The tunnel’s entry and tunnel’s exit

After the Coastal Road was thrown open to the public on Tuesday, mid-day decided to travel the distance along with urban planning and transport experts to understand just how these projects will benefit Mumbaikars. We started our ride with two experts - Alan Abraham, a city planner, and Chetan Bordawekar, a transport expert. We began from S V Road in Bandra at 9.22 am.

The aim was to assess the impact of the Bandra Worli Sea Link (BWSL) - a part of the Coastal Road that opened in 2009, 15 years ago. Without much difficulty, we took the road towards BWSL and, after paying a one-way toll of Rs 85 for using the 4.2 km long bridge, we arrived at Worli by 9.31 am. "Even during peak hours, most lanes of the bridge are empty, which indicates that the authorities' claims regarding ridership were incorrect," explained Alan. (The authorities hoped that around 1.5 lakh vehicles would ply daily on the sea link, but contrary to that, only around 40,000 vehicles use it daily.)

However, the transport expert disagreed. "The bridge helped decongest the Mahim route. People who can afford the toll can reach Worli within 8 to 10 minutes, much faster than the 40-50-minute traffic," said Chetan. The traditional Bandra-Worli route still faces traffic congestion as commuters are unwilling to pay the toll.

Also Read: Mumbai Coastal Road project: Here's all you need to know

INS Worli to entry point of the Coastal Road
Traffic slowed down after leaving the sea bridge. The two-lane road couldn't handle the influx from the four-lane bridge, causing an 8-minute delay in covering just 1.6 km. "This is exactly the problem," said transport expert Chetan. "The connecting roads within the city can't handle the traffic from the new road. There's no last-mile connectivity."

Experts Alan Abraham and Chetan Bordawekar on the newly opened Coastal Road. Pics/Shadab Khan

Till Amarsons interchange
As we started our journey on the coastal road, Alan, a city planner, pointed out the promenade on the right-hand side. "What is the use of open space that is out of reach for the public? We filed a PIL against it in the high court, and we hope the hearing will take place soon," said Abraham. Bordawekar raised a question about a separate lane for BEST buses. "It is commendable to make a lane for public transport, but who will use these stops in the middle of the road to board or alight from buses? The nearest building is at least a 10-minute walk through underpasses." We reached the Amarsons interchange, which is five kilometres away from the Worli entry point, within five minutes.

Amarsons interchange
At the Amarsons interchange, the narrow road situation in Worli repeats itself. Vehicles must head north before making a U-turn, just like before. After experiencing this, we returned to the coastal road via the Amarsons interchange. The traffic expert noted long queues of kaali-peeli taxis at the CNG station, often spilling onto the road and causing disruptions. "This will impact traffic heading towards the coastal road," Chetan explained.

On the way from Worli to Amarsons. Pic/Shadab Khan

Tunnel
Dubbed an "undersea tunnel" despite being firmly on land, the bumpy concrete Malabar Hill tunnels of the Coastal Road left a sour note. "How can it be an undersea tunnel? It is under the land and not the sea. Important routes like the sea link and Coastal Road, which face the same weather and are built for heavy traffic, are made of mastic, whereas the BMC sold us the idea of concrete for small alleys in the city. Citizens should think about it," said Alan.

Outside tunnel
The tunnel ends at Marine Drive just before the Princess Street flyover, the narrow exits are forcing CRPF deployment for traffic control. "This issue repeats," said transport expert Chetan Bordawekar. "Exit points can't handle traffic, and people need to reach places beyond the ring road."

Take away
A toll-free coastal road helped commuters reach Marine Lines within 10 minutes but created new bottlenecks at Worli due to poorly designed entry points at the junction. Although it benefited southbound traffic, additional signals hampered northbound flow. City planner Alan Abraham and transport expert Chetan Bordawekar, on a first-day ride, highlighted how the Rs 14,000 crore project serves only 0.3 per cent of commuters, lacks last-mile connectivity, and offers minimal utility for public transport. The promised promenades, parking lots, and a partially opened road fall short of their intended purpose.

Inside the tunnel under the Malabar Hill. Pic/Shadab Khan

Commuters say
Sumer Surana, CA, "I stay in Worli and it takes almost 40 minutes to reach my office at Marine Lines. I used the Coastal Road today and got there within 10 minutes. It is really helpful." Ashok Kambale, taxi-driver, said, "It is a big relief. I drove a passenger today through the Coastal Road. It was a quick ride, otherwise, I would have to wait at every traffic signal. There wasn't any toll either."

BEST lane
There is a separate lane for BEST buses on the Coastal Road. But BEST undertaking does not have any plan to start a bus service on the road yet. "The road is partially open. It is not possible to start a route only one way. Once the road is fully operational, we will think over it," said a spokesperson of the BEST. "I don't think even motorists will use this western cost high-speed corridor from the Virar or Dahisar as most of the part of the road will have a toll," said Chetan. Alan also agreed, "They allowed BEST buses on Bandra -Worli Sea Link also, but not a single bus runs on it."

Parking and promenade scam
The BMC has plans to build three parking lots with a capacity for 1,856 cars along the coastal road. "Who will park their vehicles at least two km away from their residence or offices? Also, the open space along the road is a big scam. A landscape cannot be termed as an open space if it is out of reach of the common public," said Alan.

Toll and last-mile connectivity
Transport expert Chetan Bordawekar identified a potential traffic bottleneck "The Mumbai Coastal Road will create a new traffic convergence point at Worli, near Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Road (Worli sea face)." During observations, motorists opted for the toll-free coastal road, bypassing the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. Compared to the Sea Link, the coastal road currently sees higher traffic due to the toll disparity. This situation is likely to persist even after connection, potentially causing congestion at Worli. "This toll difference will make Worli the next traffic hotspot," Bordawekar expressed.

Bordawekar criticised the project's piecemeal opening, "Opening only half the road disrupts traffic flow and offers minimal value to public transport since there are currently no bus services." Bordawekar emphasised the lack of last-mile connectivity: "The project fails to address crucial last-mile connections, evident in the congestion at Worli and potential impact on Malabar Hill Junction."

Bordawekar expressed doubts about the Western Corridor's public transport utility, "The lack of last-mile connectivity makes it impractical for buses. Additionally, tolls on most routes increase commuting costs for ordinary citizens."

Worli entry timings changed

The Worli entry of the Coastal Road will remain open from 8 am to 5 pm from Monday to Friday. Earlier the BMC had announced that it will be open from 8 am to 8 pm on weekdays. But the traffic police announced the change in timing. DPC of Traffic Anil Kumbhar said, "Entry from Worli Sea Face will be closed after 5 pm. As traffic northbond traffic will increase after 5 pm. For traffic management, we have taken this decision. While entry from the Lotus junction will be open till 8 pm." On the first day cops closed entry from Worli which confused motorists. Kumbhare said, "It was pre-decided that entry from Worli will close after 5 pm."

Travel time

SV Road (Lucky Hotel Junction) to Worli Exit (Sea Link)
8.57 minutes - 10 km

INS Tratra Junction to Bindu Madhav Thackeray Junction (Coastal Road)
10.36 minutes - 2 km

Worli Entry to Amarsons Connector Interchange
7.36 minutes - 5 km

Mukesh Chowk to Amarsons Connector Interchange
3 minutes - 0.7 km

Amarsons Connector Interchange to Marine Lines Exit
5.21 minutes - 4 km

130,000
Estimated no of vehicles expected to use the Coastal Road daily

150,000
Projected no of vehicles that were to ply on the Bandra-Worli Sea Link daily

40,000
Actual no of vehicles that use the Bandra-Worli Sea Link

16, 331
No of vehicles that used the Coastal Road on Tuesday