Metropololis... ...in motion

Mumbai was once a city ahead of its times. But its infrastructure failed to keep pace with its rapid growth in the past few decades. Now the city is getting a grand makeover with some mega projects

- DNYANESH JATHAR, NACHIKET KELKAR

In May 2023, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis drove a Lexus SUV on the entire stretch of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) during an inspection. Apparently, the drive was so exciting that they took turns and neither wanted to get out of the driving seat.

The longest sea bridge in India, the MTHL was commissioned when Fadnavis was chief minister; construction began in 2016. Opened to the public in January, it has reduced the distance between Sewri on the island city and Chirle near the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Raigad district to almost a third-from 60km to 22km. "The best thing about the MTHL is the non-stop 22km journey on the sea bridge," said Saji S., who commutes 60km one way from his house in Ambernath to Mumbai every day.

For long, two bridges over Thane creek linked Mumbai to Navi Mumbai-the Mulund-Airoli connector and the Vashi connector. The MTHL is the third. "This bridge is on land, sea and mudflats in between the two," said Dr Sanjay Mukherjee, metropolitan commissioner, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority. "The seismic strength of the bridge is two and half times more than the normal seismic activity of that region."

The bridge is a six-lane highway that ensures quick connectivity from the city to JNPT, the under-construction Navi Mumbai airport, the expressway to Pune and the national highway to Goa. 

Shinde said the MTHL was a game changer for commuters and the economy. "We are connecting the MTHL to Worli sea link and to Nariman Point via the coastal road," he said. "People living in Nariman Point will now be able to reach Panvel in just about 30 minutes." It currently takes more than an hour.