26 January,2025 04:18 PM IST | Mumbai | A Correspondent
Newly inaugurated bridge of Mumbai Coastal Road. Pic/Satej Shinde
The new northbound bridge connecting the Mumbai Coastal Road Project to the Worli-Bandra Sea Link was inaugurated by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Minister Ashish Shelar, and Mangalprabhat Lodha.
The bridge developed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will open for motorists on Monday.
According to the BMC's estimates, motorists can now complete a single journey from Bandra to Nariman Point in 18 to 19 minutes. The road will save 75 per cent in travel time and 34 per cent in fuel consumption.
The road is part of the western coastal corridor of Mumbai. With the Nariman Point to Bandra stretch completed, work is in progress for the Bandra to Versova sea link.
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Further, BMC has undertaken the Versova to Dahisar and Dahisar to Mira-Bhayandar connector projects. Additionally, there is a connector between the Coastal Road and Atal Setu from Worli to Sewri.
Maharashtra ministers also took a journey in a vintage car on Sunday. The newly constructed bridge spans 827 meters, including a 699-meter section over the sea and a 128-meter approach road. It features a 2,400-metric-ton bow arch string girder connecting the Coastal Road to the Sea Link. Traffic from Marine Drive to the Sea Link will use the northbound bridge from 7 a.m. to midnight, while the southbound bridge will handle Bandra-to-Marine Drive traffic as usual.
The Mumbai Coastal Road Project includes elevated roads, bridges, embankments, and twin 2-km-long underground tunnels with six to eight lanes. Three key interchanges at Worli, Prabhadevi, and Lower Parel will also open to the public. From March 2024 to December 2024, approximately five million vehicles have used the Coastal Road.
On an average, 18,000 to 20,000 vehicles are using the road daily, the officials said.
Worth Rs 14,000 crores, the project includes a green belt to be developed under Corporate Social Responsibility by a private player, with no commercial use permitted.
Earlier milestones include the inauguration of the southbound lane of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project on March 11, 2024, and the northbound lane on June 10, 2024.
Temporary routes were opened to manage traffic during construction.
