The Maharashtra Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation (MRIDC), also known as MahaRail, is aiming to complete the widening work of the Mankhurd road-over-bridge (RoB) by the end of the current financial year. Currently, this RoB has only four lanes – two on either side – and two more lanes on each side are being added, giving it eight lanes once the work is completed.
The Sion-Panvel Highway has eight lanes in total, both in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. However, the Mankhurd RoB, which is located on the highway, has only four lanes, creating a bottleneck situation that sees heavy traffic congestion during peak hours. On average, about 2,50,000 vehicles use this RoB every day for entering / leaving Mumbai from / to Navi Mumbai. The Sion-Panvel Highway provides connectivity between Mumbai and the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and the old Mumbai-Pune Highway. It also caters to traffic movement to and from Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT).
“MahaRail is entrusted with the responsibility of constructing RoBs across Maharashtra by the Public Works Department, Government of Maharashtra,” said an MRIDC official, adding that currently, construction / widening / reconstruction work of 49 RoBs is being carried out across the state.
“Widening work of the Mankhurd RoB is being carried out at a fast pace and MahaRail plans to open the new widened RoB by end of the current financial year,” said Rajesh Kumar Jaiswal, managing director, MRIDC. The cost of this project is approximately Rs 52 crore.
MahaRail has also decided to install new signature-themed LED lights along the widened part of the RoB, to enhance the aesthetic appeal of the surroundings.
