Tunnels Under National Park To Cut Borivali-Thane Travel Time Get Wildlife Board Nod

The National Board of Wildlife on Saturday granted approval to the Thane-Borivalli Twin Tunnel in Mumbai. This approval marks a milestone in the commencement of this watershed project.

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW

• The project requires construction of two road tunnels of 10.8-km each under the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) and the approach roads on both ends. This will provide a shorter route to commuters and help them bypass the congested route they currently use.
• The tunnel project aims to reduce the travel time from Thane to Mumbai’s western suburbs from 60 minutes to 15-20 minutes.
• The twin tunnel will also substantially cut carbon emissions from vehicles on that route, proving its beneficiary feature for the environment.
• The projected volume of traffic in this proposed new connectivity has been estimated to be around 50,000 PCU.
• The tunnels will have three lanes each and will connect Ekta Nagar, Magathane in Borivali and Tikuji-Ni-Wadi at Manpada in Thane. The tunnel road will also help in minimizing the traffic congestion on Ghodbunder Road in Thane.
• The proposed Goregaon Mulund Link Road (GMLR) and the proposed Thane to Borivali Twin Tube tunnel, 3 + 3 lane highway tunnel are competing with each other.
• As per the Detailed Project Report, the estimated cost of this project stands at approximately Rs 8,404 crore. The implementation of the project is financially capable on the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) principal.
• While announcing the project in July 2021, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the then Urban Development Minister, had said that extra care will be taken to avoid any impact on the biodiversity of the national park.