Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, on November 10, 2019, tweeted that a new flyover, expected to reduce travel by 30 minutes between Sion and Dharavi in Mumbai, stood open for public use from the evening. The 1.6-km long, 17-metre wide and four-lane BKC-Chunabhatti Connector, provides a faster route to the arterial Eastern Express Highway and is expected to greatly reduce traffic jams in the area, which is among the city’s premier business hubs.
“In public interest, I declare that BKC-Chunabhatti Connector (flyover) stands open from today evening, With this, Mumbaikars will now save 30 minutes travel time & avoid traffic congestion at Dharavi and Sion junctions,” Fadnavis tweeted. A fish belly-shaped elevated corridor, passing through BKC, Babubhai Compound, Central Railway (near Sion), Duncan Colony, Harbour Line (Chunabhatti station), Somaiya ground and lands at EEH, is yet another step towards bringing ease in living for Mumbaikars, the Maharashtra chief minister noted.
(With inputs from PTI)
BKC-Eastern Express Highway elevated corridor likely to be ready by July 2019
A team from the MMRDA, the Railways and contractors, have successfully launched six girders along the 1.6-km-long elevated BKC- Eastern Express Highway corridor in Mumbai, paving the way for the opening of the route by July 2019
May 23, 2019: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) launched 6 major girders each, over the Sion rail over-bridge (ROB) and Chunabhatti ROB during the wee hours of May 17-19, 2019 (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). The 52-metre-long 6 girders launched at Sion ROB weighed 480 tonnes and the 60-metre-long 6 girders launched over Chunabhatti ROB weighed 600 tonnes, the agency said, in a statement. The BKC-EEH connector is expected to be launched soon.
March 20, 2019: A team of a hundred people, which included 21 engineers, two railway officials and 80 workers, launched six major girders weighing 80 tonnes each for the much-awaited 1.6-km-long four-lane elevated connector from Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) to the Eastern Express Highway (EEH). The heavy-duty activity took place in the wee hours of March 17-19, 2019, during the different blocks allotted by the Railways. This will help the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) construct a bridge across the Mithi River and a rail overbridge on the Central Railway near Sion station and another rail overbridge on the Harbour Line, near Chunabhatti station.
“This was a very complex task but great team work was put up by the MMRDA, Railways and contractors, to showcase progress on the project of this magnitude. The Rs 155-crore elevated connector from BKC to EEH is expected to decongest traffic in the Sion-Dharavi area, reduce journey by three km and travel time by 30 minutes, in turn, helping the environment,” said RA Rajeev, metropolitan commissioner, MMRDA.
See also: Mumbai Coastal Road: How can authorities begin work without determining its impact, asks HC
The 53-metre-long girders were launched in three operations, each comprising two girders at a time. While the first two girders were launched between 1.06 am and 1.34 am on March 17, the next two girders were launched between 2 am and 2.46 am on March 18. The remaining set of two girders were launched between 2.22 am and 3.18 am on March 19, 2019. The launching operations were carried out under the supervision of the consultants recommended by the Railways, M/s RITES Ltd and Railway officials.
