It will have to build elevated stations, excluding the architectural finishing and pre-engineered steel roof structure of stations, and the entry and exit structures of the stations. The 32 – km – long Wadala – Ghatkopar – Thane – Kasarvadavali Metro will be built along the Eastern Express highway connecting Mumbai with Thane.

“The corridor will provide more North-South rail connectivity, and reduce the burden on the suburban rail network,” the company said. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday approved the extension of the Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli Metro-4 corridor to Ghodbunder Road. The 2.7-km extension from Kasarvadavli to Gaimukh, which was approved in the 144th meeting of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), will provide connectivity to additional 1.5 lakh passengers on the route.

The Maharashtra Cabinet approved the Metro 4 corridor on 27 September 2016. Half of the project cost will be funded by the Centre and the State Government, while the remaining will be financed through loans from the AIIB.

The foundation stone for Metro 4 was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 24th December 2016. The MMRDA invited bids for civil work on the corridor on 4th January 2017. The tenders for construction of viaducts and stations were divided into 5 packages – Wadala to Amar Mahal Junction, Garodia Nagar to Surya Nagar, Gandhi Nagar to Sonapur, Mulund Fire Station to Majiwada and Kapurbawdi to Kasarvadavali. Metro 4 was tendered alongside Metro 2B. L&T, Afcons Infrastructure, Tata, NCC and JMC,

The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority granted Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) to the project in February 2017. Reliance Infrastructure-RdE, JKumar Group, ITD Cementation, CHEC-TPL bid for packages on both Metro 2B and Metro 4. A total of 10 firms and/or consortia submitted bids for the two lines, two of whom (Simplex Infrastructures and a consortium of GHEC-RCC-JV-China) bid exclusively for Metro 2B packages. The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority granted Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) to the project in February 2017. Over 1 km of the line passes over water bodies in Bhakti Park and Wadala, both areas classified as Coastal Regulation Zone II where CRZ rules limit construction activities. 48 piers are proposed to build in the CRZ II. 

The MMRDA will construct metro car depots for the line on a 30 hectare plot at Owala village in Thane district and another in Vikhroli. The MMRDA utilized a drone to carry out survey work for Metro 4.

The drones were fitted with 360 degrees camera that provide up to 3 millimetre accuracy. The aerial survey takes less time than a regular survey, achieves greater accuracy and helps protect against false claims for compensation.

In March 2017, the MMRDA stated that it was conducting a pre-feasibility study on extending the line from Wadala to Mumbai General Post Office in South Mumbai, via the Mumbai Port Trust. The proposed 8 km extension is estimated to cost 300 crores per km.

The state wildlife board recently gave the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) permission to carry out an on-ground survey at the national park. 

This development assumes significance as the Rs 2,000 crore project requires several environment clearances. Environmentalists have opposed the project; saying would affect the ecological balance of the area.

“We got permission for a topographic survey, which our consultants have started. After we receive a few other permissions, we will start our geo-technical survey to study the strata. Following this, we will prepare a detailed project report.” said a senior MSRDC official.

Proposed in August 2015, the six-lane tunnel will connect Tikuji-ni-Wadi in Thane and Ekta Nagar on the Western Express Highway in Borivali. Currently, the 23-km distance between Thane and Borivali — via Ghodbunder Road — takes almost an hour or even more, if there is a traffic jam. Around 70,000 cars travel across Ghodbunder Road daily.

Thane and Borivali are separated by a chain of hills, most of which are part of SGNP. Significantly, SGNP’s reserved forest is under threat owing to encroachments. In March last year, the high court ordered the demolition of these encroachments.

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation has been pursuing its dream project of completing a tunnel between Borivali and Thane. This is a dream project of MSRDC minister Eknath Shinde of Shiv Sena, who is a Thane district guardian minister. The MSRDC wants to drill bore holes at nine places in the core zone of the SGNP. The proposal says that MSRDC wants to do detailed Project report (DPR) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study for construction of Twin-Tube, 3 Lane each highway tunnel between Tikuji-ni-wadi in Thane City and road to Western Express highway in Borivali East, Mumbai passing through Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali. 

Out of 9 bore holes proposed, one bore hole will be in the recreation zone area of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park and 8 bore holes will be in the eco-sensitive zone. The depth of proposed bore holes of size (about 100 mm diameter) ranges from 20 m to 97 m. As the area is open, the machinery may cause sound pollution and it may have impact on the wildlife, says the proposal. The project will reduce the existing traffic congestion on Western Express Highway and Thane Ghodbunder road. 

The following benefits are expected of the project, says the proposal. This proposal has been recommended by the Chief Wildlife Warden. Maharashtra State recommended the proposal with conditions that there shall not be tree felling, only few branches and bushes may be cut to facilitate clear view. No dumping of debris on forest area or any land under the control of the SGNP Division shall be done by project proponent. In event of striking an aquifer or aqueduct, leading to its utility as water source for the wildlife, the same shall be converted into a bore-well and handed it over for upkeep and usage, the proposal says.

The time to travel to Mumbai will also be reduced to over an hour from around two hours. The first phase will see water transport from Kalyan to Thane to Vasai. In the second phase, the corporation has proposed two major routes. An officer from TMC said, “We will start water transport from Thane (Saket) to Gateway of India via Trombay, Elephanta and Ferry Warf and also Thane to Navi Mumbai (Panvel and JNPT). We had conducted a pre-feasibility study of this phase and made a presentation beforeunion transport minister Nitin Gadkari and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.

They have given a go-ahead to start the work on the DPR of this project. We have begun the tendering process to appoint an agency for the DPR. The DPR will be ready in three months.” The tender for pre-feasibility study of the second phase of water transport was called in October last year. In January this year, the corporation appointed consultant for pre-feasibility report of phase two, while the state and central government on April 24, gave a go ahead for making a DPR of this project. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday assured residents of seamless connectivity throughout Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), for which, he said one of the options was water transport. While inaugurating various road projects in Navi Mumbai and Thane, Fadnavis said Thane would soon be connected to Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan and Vasai through waterways.

While the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) is looking at a December deadline for the first phase of water transport project connecting Kalyan, Thane and Vasai, planning has already started for the second phase to connect Thane to Mumbai and Navi Mumbai.

According to the TMC, a pre-feasibility study has been completed and presented to Fadnavis. A detailed project report (DPR) is now being prepared. “The corporation has floated tenders to appoint consultant for preparing the DPR,” said Anil Patil, Thane city engineer. Implemented jointly by Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, Maharashtra Maritime Board and Thane Municipal Corporation, the Thane-Mumbai waterways will cost Rs 661 crore and will be funded by the state and central governments. The tender for a pre-feasibility study of the second phase of water transport was called in October last year. Work on the second phase is proposed to begin in March 2019. 

There is no intra-city water transport service anywhere in Mumbai apart from the Gateway of India to Mandwa and Elephanta. The government had proposed the Borivali to Gateway of India route in 2011, but since the sea on Mumbai’s western coast is rough (particularly in the monsoon), the project didn’t take off. Ferry operators couldn’t run services in the monsoon and operation costs proved to be too high. The eastern seaboard is calm and isn’t expected to pose similar challenges. The Thane-Vasai and Thane-Mumbai will be the first intra-city water service in Mumbai. It will connect Thane (Saket) to Gateway of India via Trombay, Elephanta and Ferry Wharf and also Thane to Navi Mumbai (via Panvel and Jawaharlal Nehru Port). For commuters, this is a welcome proposal. “I commute to Vashi every day for work. I have to go to Thane station from my house in Kalwa east and then board a train to Vashi. Moreover, the trains are overcrowded during peak hours,” said Yogesh Dandekar, 37. “If there is a direct ferry from Thane to Vashi, I will surely love to take it to work daily, as the commute will be much more comfortable and time-saving.” 

The ridership report of the second phase has estimated that around 30,000 passengers could use water transport on a daily basis. This would help decongest existing public transport networks as well as reduce air and noise pollution. If the project goes to plan, it will save one hour of travel time to Mumbai and almost 40 minutes to Navi Mumbai. The first phase has inched ahead after getting an in-principle approval in a meeting held on April 24 and headed by Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. This means that the water transport project will go ahead subject to clearances and approvals. The state also approved the multi-modal hub to be developed at Kolshet for.the route. The project will reduce the travel time between Kalyan and Vasai to 70 minutes and each passenger will have to pay Rs 29.

The civic authorities don’t anticipate any delay in getting approval for the second phase. The hurdles for them are the ongoing works on the existing bridges on the route. Urban planner Mayuresh Bhadsavle pointed out that while it looks good on paper, there was little clarity on the economic viability and creating support infrastructure for the project. “The entire concept is still in a very nascent state, the ground reality is completely different from the presentation the corporation has put forth the environment ministry,” said Bhadsavle. “The creek in Thane is completely polluted and lot of dredging will have to be done to start water transport. The capital cost of the dredging is not clear. Moreover, there should be proper access options for the people to reach jetties, thus support infrastructure such as parking and roads at the jetties need to be set up.” The municipal corporation plans to develop three jetties at Nagla, Kolshet and Parsik first. Patil said, “The first phase will have 10 jetties across Vasai, Mira Bhayander, Thane and Kalyan. The civic commissioner has announced to operate the first ferry service from December this year.”

The second phase is at too nascent a stage to configure its final route. Bhadsavle said, “The economic viability is the most important aspect of the project, as the cost of operation and maintenance will be huge. A decade ago, the government had proposed a catamaran service from Borivali to Gateway of India which was suspended as the operation and maintenance cost could not be recovered. If this route with such a high passenger volume could fail, the corporation will need a strong financial plan in place for the project. He also pointed out that the fare structure, the target demographic and how commuters would be able to reach the jetties from their homes are key features that are yet to be defined.

The road promises to bring down a travel time of 45 minutes to just 15 minutes. The multi-deck road project was initially planned as a solution for congestion at Teen Haath Naka, one of the world’s most congested intersections, but will now be redrawn to extend it.

An initial study by civic officials reveals that the speed of vehicles on the freeway is expected to increase to at least 50kmph against the present average of 20 kmph.

“Travel time between Mulund Toll Naka and Majiwada will not be over 15 minutes after that. Presently, it takes as much as 45 minutes to cover the distance,” said an official. Once completed, Nashik and Gujarat-bound traffic from Mumbai, along with that from Ghodbunder Road, can effortlessly zip past city traffic in both directions, saving time and fuel.

The approximate height of the flyover will be around 15 metres above ground, and will be designed keeping in mind the proposed Metro line running along the stretch and an elevated railway station planned in the vicinity. The cost of the initial elevated road, which was to be just 1.5km long, was around Rs 240 crores, but will now see an escalation.

Almost three years after the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) had planned an elevated road on the hilly section of the Ghodbunder Road in Thane, the construction of the proposed plan has still not received the wildlife and forest approval from the Environment Ministry.

According to senior MSRDC officials, on the condition of anonymity, the proposed project is allegedly set to get an approval soon and the construction of the same will be starting in the next few months.There is a lot of vehicular traffic between Thane and Borivali. According to MSRDC officials, the elevated road plan was proposed to decongest Ghodbunder Road from the heavy traffic that occurs during peak hours. The elevated road is estimated to cost around Rs 450 crores.

Officials claimed that the smaller vehicles should use the elevated road, and that heavy vehicles should continue using the existing road to ease the traffic congestion on the roads.

The elevated road will start from the Fountain Hotel at the Western Express Highway (WEH) and stretches till the Gaimukh area, which falls under the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP). Since the Gaimukh area falls under SGNP, an approval from the Environment Ministry is necessary to start the project. Ghodbunder Road already has four existing ground level lanes and the elevated road will provide an additional four lanes.

The elevated road project received a nod from the MSRDC and the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure in 2015. However, the project is still stuck due to the pending wildlife and forest approval. “We are hoping that we soon get a nod from the wildlife and forest committee to start the elevated road project.

Once we receive the nod from them, we will make a Detailed Project Report (DPR) about the same and the construction work will start soon in the next few months,” said SD Dhote, Chief Engineer, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC).