Mumbai Coastal Road project: Will its completion impact the South Mumbai real estate market?

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated the bow-string arch bridge connecting Mumbai Coastal Road and Bandra Worli Sea Link

With the Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde inaugurating 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, connectivity between South Mumbai and the suburbs is expected to improve immensely.

The Coastal Road project is expected to benefit areas like Nariman Point, Cuffe Parade, Churchgate, Mumbai Central, Worli among several other areas of south Mumbai and Central Mumbai directly.( (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo))

This may also have a positive impact on Mumbai’s real estate market, especially redevelopment of old buildings, an activity that has picked up pace in south Mumbai and Central Mumbai, said real estate experts.

The bridge is open to northbound traffic between 7 am to 11 pm on weekdays only from September 13. The southbound vehicles, however, will have to take the existing route till both arms of the Coastal Road are connected with the sea link,

The Coastal Road project is expected to benefit areas like Nariman Point, Cuffe Parade, Churchgate, Mumbai Central, Worli among several other areas of south Mumbai and Central Mumbai directly. Suburban areas like Bandra, Versova, Andheri, Malad, Kandivali, Borivali and Dahisar are expected to benefit indirectly due to the improved connectivity of suburbs with central and south Mumbai, they said.

"Businesses may consider having a small office in this micro-market (South Mumbai), along with an additional office in other business districts," a report by Savills had observed.

Office rentals in South Mumbai have stabilised to ₹200 to ₹240 per sq ft from ₹255 per sq ft owing to lack of quality space. Comparatively, rates in BKC have gone up in the past five years, local brokers said.

In BKC, office rents range between ₹250 and ₹500. They have even touched ₹700 for a deal for a shorter tenure, said brokers.

According to local brokers, rentals in south Mumbai have stabilised on account of new Grade A inventory being in short supply unlike in other parts of the city such as BKC.

Will increase in redevelopment projects lead to an uptick in Mumbai’s commercial market?

Redevelopment activity picked up in the city post COVID-19, especially in the western and central suburbs of the financial capital. However, in the last one year, redevelopment has also picked up in south Mumbai as have new project launches.

On September 12, Bengaluru-based listed real estate developer Puravankara announced that it has secured redevelopment rights of a housing society named Miami Apartments at Breach Candy in South Mumbai.

In Malabar Hill, listed real estate developer Macrotech Developers also known as Lodha, is executing a project known as Lodha Malabar. The project shot into lime light after Bajaj Auto chairman Niraj Bajaj purchased a sea-facing triplex for ₹252.5 crore in March 2023.

Other listed players like Godrej Properties and Sunteck also have plans to launch projects in south Mumbai.

On a Year-on-Year (Y-o-Y) basis, the South Mumbai real estate market witnessed a growth of 41% in terms of sales in FY’24 when compared to FY’23. The number of housing units sold went up to 2,154 from 1,525, according to a report shared by CREDAI-MCHI, the apex body of the real estate sector and CRE Matrix, a real estate consultancy firm.

Unsold inventory, on the other hand, witnessed a marginal 2% increase in South Mumbai in FY24 to touch 13,814 from 14,141 units.

Commercial Grade A buildings in South Mumbai currently command a rate of ₹50,000 per sq ft. Residential projects command a price of ₹1 lakh sq ft too. The Metro rail and Coastal Road projects may impact prices of redeveloped commercial projects. “We will have to wait and watch what happens to South Mumbai after the infrastructure push,” said Pramod Vyas, president of SMART (South MetroCity Association of Realtors), the apex body of real estate consultants in South Mumbai.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had said on September 12 that the Mumbai coastal road is a game-changer and it will be extended in the future to Bhayander, Virar and Palghar, which would benefit the mega Vadhvan port, the foundation stone of which was recently laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Shinde, along with Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and other cabinet colleagues, inaugurated the coastal road connector after inspecting the stretch that connects the Marine Line-Worli coastal road and the Bandra Worli Sea Link (BWSL).

"It will save time and fuel as well as reduce pollution. The coastal road is a gamechanger. It is being extended to Versova and in the future it will be extended to Bhayander, Virar and Palghar. Vadhvan Port, which will be among the top 10 ports in the world, will also be benefitted due to the coastal road (when it is extended till Palghar)," Shinde informed.

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, Shinde said.

The Worli to Marine Drive stretch of the coastal road was inaugurated on March 11 this year, after which the northbound carriageway was commissioned up to Haji Ali on June 10. On July 11, the stretch from Haji Ali to Worli was thrown open to traffic. 

The connector is, therefore, the fourth phase of the project. The coastal road, built at a cost of around ₹14,000 crore, allows motorists to reach Marine Drive to Worli in less than 15 minutes. Work on the 10.58 kilometre road began on October 13, 2018.