The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) has unveiled plans for a significant expansion of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, aiming to convert it into a 10-lane superhighway. This initiative is intended as a long-term measure to address the growing traffic congestion on one of the country’s busiest and costliest expressways.
“This is an upgrade from our earlier proposal to make it an eight-lane facility. The latest plan will cost around Rs 1,420 crore,” said Anilkumar Gaikwad, MSRDC Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, on Friday.
According to a media report, Anilkumar Gaikwad stated that the Detailed Project Report (DPR) is currently being finalised and will soon be submitted to the state government for approval.
Currently, a journey between Mumbai and Pune takes about two hours under normal conditions, but heavy weekend traffic can add an extra hour. The proposed expansion aims to ease this congestion and ensure smoother travel even during peak times.
The entire widening project is estimated to cost ₹14,260 crore, with construction expenses alone pegged at around ₹8,440 crore. Notably, MSRDC intends to finance the project through toll revenue rather than government funding. “We will bank on toll collection,” said MSRDC Vice-Chairman and MD Anilkumar Gaikwad, adding that the final financing model either Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) or annuity — will be decided later.
The Mumbai-Pune Expressway, India’s first and oldest access-controlled expressway — was inaugurated in 2002 and stretches 94.6 km. Built by MSRDC at an initial cost of around ₹1.63 lakh crore, it serves as a crucial route connecting Mumbai to Pune, a key educational and industrial center in Maharashtra.
At present, the expressway handles nearly 65,000 vehicles on weekdays and over 1 lakh on weekends. With traffic volumes increasing by about 5–6% annually, MSRDC considers widening the corridor essential to meet rising demand and ensure smoother traffic flow.
The current toll agreement for the Mumbai-Pune Expressway is valid until 2045, but MSRDC may request an extension if the proposed 10-lane expansion is approved. Once implemented, the upgrade is expected to significantly improve traffic flow, making the expressway a faster and more efficient corridor easing the burden on one of India’s most crucial transport routes.
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