Taking a cue from the previous government that led the ambitious 701-km Mumbai-Nagpur expressway or Samruddhi corridor, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government has taken the first step towards constructing a 500-km greenfield Konkan expressway.
The state’s infrastructure arm, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) on Tuesday issued a request for proposal to appoint consultancy services to prepare a feasibility report and detailed project report on the expressway.
In March, state urban development minister Eknath Shinde had announced that a greenfield expressway will be constructed along the Maharashtra coastline, connecting the three districts of Raigad, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg. The state is looking at starting the expressway from Chirle in Raigad where the under-construction 22km sea-bridge – the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) – ends.
The expressway will extend till Patradevi at the Maharashtra-Goa border in Sindhudurg district.
Shinde had said that the project would help boost coastal tourism and reduce stress on the Mumbai-Goa National Highway.
Radheshyam Mopalwar, vice-chairman and managing director, MSRDC, said, “The consultant will be expected to look at the feasibility of the project along with the social and environmental impact. It will also propose a financial model that can be adopted.”
MSRDC has undertaken the construction of the Samruddhi corridor at ₹55,000 crore. It will reduce travel time between Mumbai and Nagpur to eight hours.
The corporation has also undertaken the construction of the Versova-Bandra sea link at ₹7,000 crore and is looking to extend it till Virar at an additional cost of ₹24,000 crore.
Transport experts said that the expenditure on a new mega project needs to be justified by the government.
“Any road project means high expenditure. If the project is looking at boosting public transport, then it can benefit people. Also, the Konkan railway is still not utilised to its full potential, so there needs to be a better reason for the new project,” said Paresh Rawal, a Mumbai-based transport expert.
