November 03, 2025: Mumbai may soon get a 70-kilometre network of underground tunnels, designed to ease chronic traffic congestion and connect major parts of the city. The ambitious project, proposed by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), will be executed in three phases.
An MMRDA official said, “The tunnels will help divert a significant amount of through traffic underground and reduce the surface-level congestion. The idea is to help ease bottlenecks across the city’s arterial routes.”
The first phase, about 16 km long, will connect the end of the coastal road—spanning from Marine Drive to the Worli end of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link—to the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) business hub and Terminal 2 of the Mumbai Airport. It will also provide a link to the proposed Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train station at BKC. A consultant will soon be appointed to prepare a techno-economic feasibility report and a detailed project report (DPR) to determine the route, cost, and required clearances.
The second phase aims to create a crucial east-west link by connecting the Eastern Express Highway and the Western Express Highway, along with an additional connection to the airport. This section is expected to be 10 km long.
The third phase, the most extensive, will comprise a 44-km north-south underground corridor spanning the full vertical stretch of Mumbai, enabling smoother freight and passenger movement without affecting surface traffic.
This new tunnel network will operate independently of other major ongoing tunnel projects, including the 9-km Orange Gate–Marine Drive tunnel, which will connect the Eastern Freeway to the coastal road by 2028–29, and the 11.85-km Thane–Borivali twin tunnel, which will cut travel time from over an hour to just 15–20 minutes. Together, these projects mark a transformative phase in Mumbai’s urban infrastructure planning.
Source: The Print
