Editor’s Desk
Mumbai Doesn't Need More Roads, It Needs Better Public Transport
Every weekday, over 75 lakh commuters depend on Mumbai's suburban railway, the lifeline that continues to carry the overwhelming share of the city's workforce.
Mayura Shanbaug
Editor,
Somewhere along the way, the city confused building roads with building mobility. Every new flyover is celebrated as a milestone. Every elevated connector is hailed as another engineering marvel. Every road project comes wrapped in promises of faster travel. But for the overwhelming majority of Mumbaikars, the daily commute still begins with squeezing into an overcrowded local train, waiting endlessly for a BEST bus, changing between disconnected metro lines or walking long distances because the last mile remains an afterthought.
Perhaps the city's transport philosophy can now be summed up in one sentence: If you cannot reduce congestion, simply build another flyover and hold another inauguration.
The irony is almost poetic. Mumbai's roads keep multiplying, but so do its traffic jams.
Mumbai's metro network now serves more than 10 lakh passengers every day, while BEST buses carry nearly 30 lakh commuters, yet passengers still navigate separate ticketing systems, payment apps and agencies for what should feel like one journey. The state budget for 2026-27 continued its heavy focus on transport infrastructure, while Mumbai's metro network keeps expanding. And still integration remains the missing link. A commuter changing from a local train to the metro often needs different tickets, different payment systems and different journey planners; as though every transport agency believes it operates in a different city.
Ironically, private cars account for barely 13-15% of daily trips in MMR, while public transport and walking remain the dominant modes of travel. Nonetheless policy priorities often appear to favour the minority behind steering wheels over the majority standing in train compartments.
The absurdity becomes clearer during a routine commute. One journey may involve a suburban train, a metro, a BEST bus or an auto-rickshaw. Four modes of transport. Four systems. Multiple apps. Separate fares. Plenty of confusion. The only thing that remains constant is the commuter's frustration.
Mumbai has become remarkably efficient at constructing infrastructure while remaining surprisingly inefficient at connecting it.
The city recorded over 80,000 property registrations in H1 2026, signalling continued urban growth and rising demand. But expanding skylines also mean expanding commuter demand. Without a truly integrated transport system, every new housing cluster simply adds more pressure to an already fragmented network.
What Mumbai lacks today is not engineering capability. It lacks institutional coordination.
The answer is not another flyover or record-breaking bridge, but a commuter-first transport system with integrated fares, seamless connectivity, reliable feeder services, better pedestrian infrastructure and a single accountable authority. Infrastructure should be measured not by kilometres of roads built, but by whether people travel faster, spend less and reach home with dignity rather than daily frustration.
Mumbai has spent decades building roads for vehicles. It is time it started building a transport system for people.
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