For motorists, Sion-Panvel road turns into highway to hell

This is the only road that connects Mumbai to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and the Mumbai-Goa highway

For 24-year-old Pratik Mukherjee, it used to a one-and-a-half-hour journey on the Sion-Panvel Highway from Panvel to his office in Vikhroli. But of late, he has been spending one hour more on the office bus.

Traffic crawls on the Sion-Panvel highway near CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai. (HT Photo)

“Traffic congestion starts on the road around 7.20 am. Therefore, we have advanced the timing of our bus to ensure that we can avoid the jam. That’s how we are cutting short our onwards travelling time. But there is no respite in the evening,” said Mukherjee, who works at a multi-national company.

Thousands of people from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) travel via the highway for personal or professional work. This is the only road that connects Mumbai to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and the Mumbai-Goa highway.

Mukherjee is not the only commuter who is livid with the crumbling parts of the highway, which witness regular tailbacks.

For example, 37-year-old Rajesh Puri does not have a prayer of a smooth commute on the Sion-Panvel Higway, resulting in losses to his insurance business.

The Ulwe resident said, “Travelling during peak hours has become next to impossible owing to potholes and traffic snarls. On Monday, I was stuck at Kharghar, and it took me around half-an-hour to travel a distance that I normally cover in two minutes.”

“Due to the poor condition of the road, I avoid travelling on it unless the work is very urgent, even though that takes toll on my professional life. The state should pay attention to this matter and take some requisite measures as soon as possible.”

RM Bhosale, 51, a resident of Kamothe, said he had stopped travelling by car to reach office at Chembur because of potholes.

“Now I take a share auto to reach Mansarovar station and hire another auto from Chembur station to my office. The trains are very crowded in the morning, but I am saving nearly two hours daily by avoiding travelling in car,” he said.

Bhosale said a lot of people have switched to autorickshaws to save some time.