Coastal road-sea link connector opened to northbound traffic

Chief minister Eknath Shinde said the new bridge will ease traffic in south Mumbai, while also saving time and fuel for motorists. The southbound arm will be opened to traffic in December

Mumbai: Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday inaugurated one arm of the bow-string arch bridge connecting the Mumbai Coastal Road to the Bandra Worli Sea Link, which he said would enable motorists to travel from Marine Drive to Bandra in just 10 minutes. From today, the stretch will open to northbound traffic between 7 am and 11 pm on weekdays only.

Mumbai, India. Sep 12, 2024: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, along with deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated the ‘bow-string’ arch bridge, which connects the Mumbai Coastal Road and Bandra Worli Sea Link (BWSL), on Thursday. The new arch bridge is impressive in size, weighing about 4,000 metric tonnes and stretching roughly 140 meters in length. This bridge is part of a larger project that aims to improve travel in Mumbai city. Mumbai, India. Sep 12, 2024. (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo) (Hindustan Times)

Shinde said the new bridge will ease traffic in south Mumbai, while also saving time and fuel for motorists. “Mumbaikars will be able to enjoy comfortable, speedy, traffic-free journeys. As a result, they’ll be able to give more time to their homes and work,” he added.

The chief minister inaugurated the connector in the presence of deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, guardian ministers Deepak Kesarkar and Mangal Prabhat Lodha, additional chief secretary Iqbal Singh Chahal and municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, among others.

Hailing the coastal road as a game-changer, Shinde said it is being extended to Versova and would go up to Bhayander, Virar and Palghar in the future. The distance between Marine Drive and Versova will be covered in just 40-50 minutes, down from the present 2-3 hours once the extension is complete, he said. “Vadhvan Port, which will be among the top 10 ports in the world, will also be benefitted due to the coastal road,” he added.

The southbound arm of the coastal road-sea link bridge will be opened to traffic in December. Shinde said that 92% of the entire coastal road’s construction work, including the two connecting arms of the arch bridge, is complete, and the rest will be done soon.

Taking a dig at the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi government, Fadvanvis said, “The project was stuck for 25 years. Through the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s government, only talks were held but no permission given. When the Mahayuti government came to power, I immediately fought for all the permissions, and we started the work. It was only when our government came into power again that the work began at a fast pace.”

The Worli-to-Marine-Drive stretch of the coastal road was opened to traffic on March 11, followed by the northbound section up to Haji Ali on June 10. On July 11, the stretch from Haji Ali to Worli was thrown open to traffic. The sea link connector is the fourth phase of the project.

The beam connecting the coastal road with the sea link was installed on April 26, with prefab parts shipped in from Haryana and assembled at Mazgaon. The second girder of the connector was installed on May 15, with concretisation work starting thereafter. Explaining why one of the beams is higher than the other one, a BMC official it is due to the curve of the roads.