Passing beneath the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, the Twin Tunnel Project will directly connect the Western Express Highway to the Eastern Express Highway in Thane.
In a significant development concerning the construction of the Thane-Borivali Twin Tunnel Project, the project has received 35.5644 hectares of forest land. The project aims to reduce traffic on Ghodbunder Road. The 35.5644 hectares of acquired forest land have been handed over to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to initiate work on the project. The upcoming project is slated to reduce the distance between Thane and the Mumbai suburbs.
The land acquired includes land from a village on the Borivali side and seven villages, namely Manpada, Majiwada, Borivade, Yeoor, and Chene, on the Thane side. Towards the Borivali side, construction permission has been provided for the project on land in Magathane village.
Project to cost Rs 14,401 crore
The Twin Tunnel Project, estimated to incur a total cost of Rs 14,401 crore, will span approximately 1.85 km. Of the total cost, Rs 1,144.60 crore will be borne by the state government, while Rs 572.30 crore will be covered by the central government. Rs 700 crore will be spent on land acquisition.
Passing beneath the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, the Twin Tunnel Project will directly connect the Western Express Highway to the Eastern Express Highway in Thane. The construction of tunnels, with three lanes each, has been planned using tunnel boring machines (TBMs).
Work to be completed in three phases
The work on the upcoming project will be completed in three phases. In Package 1, the work will be undertaken on a 5.75 km-long tunnel between Borivali and Thane. Under Package 2, a 6.5 km-long tunnel between Thane and Borivali will be constructed. Package 3 will see the installation of ventilation systems and other equipment along the route. The target for completing the project has been set in three years by MMRDA.
With the completion of the project, vehicles will be able to reach Borivali from Thane in just 15 to 20 minutes without going via Ghodbunder Road.
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