Mumbai-Baroda Expressway Progress: 1.5 Km of Twin Tunnel Completed Under Matheran Hills

Mumbai, 16th November 2023: Significant progress has been made in the construction of a 4.41 km long twin tunnel beneath the Matheran hills as part of the Mumbai-Baroda Expressway project. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has accelerated the undergrounding work, completing 1.5 km of tunnelling between February and October. The NHAI aims to finalize the twin tunnel project by September-October 2024. Once operational, the tunnel will drastically reduce the travel time between Bhoj village in Ambernath and Morbe in Panvel from one to one and a half hours to just three to four minutes. Additionally, the Mumbai-Baroda journey can be completed in only four and a half hours.

The Mumbai-Delhi Expressway, a 1386 km-long project by NHAI, aims to shorten the distance between Delhi and Mumbai. The Baroda-Mumbai (Morbe, Panvel) section is a crucial segment of this expressway, undertaken in two phases: Baroda-Talasari and Talasari-Morbe, Panvel. The Talasari-Morbe phase is further divided into three segments labelled ‘A,’ ‘B,’ and ‘C.’ In the ‘C’ phase, a challenging four-lane twin tunnel is being constructed between Bhoj in Ambernath and Morbe in Panvel, passing under the environmentally sensitive Matheran hills.

The tunnelling process, spanning 4.41 km in length, is intricate and demanding. Utilizing state-of-the-art Scanning Tunneling Microscope
(STM) technology for tunnelling through hard rock, NHAI is navigating the environmentally sensitive terrain. The tunnelling involves blasting rocks to create the underground passage. A senior NHAI official has confirmed that one and a half km of tunnelling on all four sides of the tunnel has been completed between February and October. The entire tunnel project is expected to be completed by September-October 2024, and the Baroda-Mumbai Expressway is slated for completion in December.

Once the double tunnel is operational, the travel time between Bhoj and Morbe will be reduced to three to four minutes, significantly improving current travel times of one to one and a half hours. The Mumbai-Baroda Expressway’s anticipated completion in December is expected to address traffic congestion issues in Vasai, Thane, Kalyan, and Navi Mumbai. This strategic highway project holds paramount importance for the Mumbai metropolitan region, further connecting to the Virar-Alibaug multi-purpose road.