New flyover to ease traffic on Western Express Highway

If you're among the thousands of commuters who spend precious time and even more precious fuel negotiating the Kherwadi junction, here's some good news.

If you're among the thousands of commuters who spend precious time and even more precious fuel negotiating the Kherwadi junction, here's some good news.

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The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has decided to revive its four-year-old proposal to build a flyover at the junction.

"We have invited tenders to build a 580-metre long flyover to bypass the busy Kherwadi junction," MMRDA's joint project director Dilip Kawathkar said.

The four-lane flyover on the Western Express Highway will start 125 metres before the junction and will descend near Kherwadi Polytechnic.

MMRDA officials said the project will cost Rs. 38 crore. Officials hope work will start by early next year, will be complete in 18 months.

The proposal to decongest Kherwadi Junction has been pending for years. In 2008, the MMRDA proposed the project and asked the MSRDC to build the project. However, the project did not take off as the traffic police did not give a clearance.

Traffic officials had the asked MSRDC to first finish work on the Bandra-Worli sea link before taking up the flyover project as they felt that construction on the stretch would lead to massive traffic jams.

Kherwadi junction has been a major traffic bottleneck, with traffic from four roads including the Bandra-Kurla Complex, Mahim causeway, Dr Ambedkar Road and the Bandra-Worli sea link converge at the signal.

The junction is also used by residents living in Bandra East to cross over to Bandra station or to the Bandra terminus.