Mumbai’s Rs 5,821-crore Malad Creek tunnel package, part of the 22-km Versova-Bhayander Coastal Road, is expected to enter the mining phase in early 2027 and become operational by 2029, according to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation officials.
The 3.9-km twin-tunnel corridor will connect Mindspace in Malad West with Charkop in Kandivali. It is being built beneath the Malad Creek, the Poisar River and other creek and mangrove-sensitive areas to provide an alternative route to the Western Express Highway, Link Road and SV Road.
The tunnels form part of Phase II of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project, a high-speed corridor being developed to connect Versova with Bhayander in the northern western suburbs. The overall project cost has been pegged at Rs 20,000 crore, with Rs 5,821 crore earmarked for the twin-tunnel package.
Around 3 km of the tunnel alignment will consist of cylindrical sections constructed using a Tunnel Boring Machine. These sections will have a diameter of 14.2 metres and will pass beneath the Poisar River and creeks. The remaining 700-metre section will be rectangular in shape.
Each tunnel will have three lanes for vehicular movement. The tunnel width will vary between 36 metres and 45 metres, and five cross passages are planned as emergency connections between the two tunnel bores. Civic officials said the facilities would include ventilation systems, heat sensors and fire and accident prevention equipment.
The decision to use an underground route has been linked to the ecological sensitivity of the alignment. The area contains mangrove patches and water bodies, and the BMC has said tunnelling would avoid damage to mangroves and eliminate the need to cut trees along the route.
The project is intended to reduce pressure on the existing north-south road network in Mumbai’s western suburbs, where traffic currently depends heavily on the Western Express Highway, Link Road and SV Road. The BMC has said the coastal road will provide an additional route for travel between the southern and northern parts of the western suburbs.
“Considering the tunnels will pass below mangrove patches, rivers and creeks, we can say that this will be Mumbai’s first vehicular tunnels that will pass underneath water bodies,” Abhijit Bangar, additional municipal commissioner (Projects), told The Indian Express. He said the civic body was targeting 2029 for the coastal road project and that travel between Versova and Bhayander could take less than 20 minutes once the corridor is operational, compared with more than an hour currently.
The immediate milestone for the tunnel component is the start of mining work in early 2027. The BMC is targeting completion and opening of the broader Versova-Bhayander corridor in 2029.
