The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has stepped up work on a 3.9-km twin-tunnel road connecting Mindspace in Malad with Charkop in Kandivali, marking a key development in Phase II of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project.
Parts of the Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) being deployed for the underground stretch are expected to reach Mumbai by December. The civic body has already begun excavation and piling activities at Charkop to build a launching shaft from where the massive machines will be lowered underground.
The twin tunnels form part of Packages C and D of the 22.93-km Coastal Road Phase II, which is planned to create a high-speed north-south connection between Versova and Dahisar. The wider project includes elevated roads, cable-stayed bridges and more than 10 interchanges.
The two parallel tunnels will run beneath a densely populated section of North Mumbai. Each tunnel is planned to accommodate three lanes and will feature five cross-passages for connectivity and emergency access. The TBMs will have an external diameter of approximately 15.70 metres and operate around 40 metres below ground level.
BMC officials, including senior engineers and Additional Municipal Commissioner Abhijit Bangar, recently inspected the Charkop site, where excavation has begun on a 65-metre by 40-metre plot. The launching shaft will serve as the entry point for the TBMs and allow tunnel excavation to begin.
“After the spare parts of the first TBM machine arrive, work on the assembly of the TBM will be carried out. The target is to launch and start the digging of tunnels next month after the parts arrive. Meanwhile, the BMC is hoping to complete assembly and digging of the second tunnel by June 2027,” a senior BMC official said on Wednesday.
Of the total 3.9-km tunnel alignment, TBMs will excavate approximately 3 km. The remaining 700 metres will be constructed using the cut-and-cover method, involving a rectangular underground box structure.
Once completed, the underground link is expected to provide an important alternative route for motorists and strengthen east-west and north-south connectivity across Mumbai’s western suburbs.
Source: The Indian Express
