The ambitious Coastal Road Project in Mumbai has been delayed by up to 16 months due to a combination of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as a court-ordered stay. The revised deadline for the completion of the project is now July 2023 as per civic officials. Construction on this project originally began in 2018.
Also read - Mumbai Coastal Road Project Affects The Local Fishermen Of Haji Ali
However, Municipal Commissioner, I S Chahal said that a lot of work has been finished even with the coronavirus restrictions and lockdowns in place. “Despite the lockdown, 17% of the work has been completed and we have spent Rs 1,281 crore - the highest so far on construction of the coastal road,” he said.
In addition to the road, the Coastal Road project will also consist of a pedestrian promenade spanning 7.7 Km from Priyadarshini Park to Haji Ali and from Haji Ali to Worli.
Currently, the contractor appointed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Larsen & Toubro, is said to be assembling tunnel boring machines (TBM) after individual parts arrived in April.
Some officials said that they faced trouble finding Chinese engineers to assemble the TBM due to the India-China border tensions that surfaced in June. However, officials said that the machine will be ready by December 15 and will be used for drilling through Malabar Hill to create an underground tunnel/link between Priyadarshini Park and Girgaum Chowpatty.
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The 10.6 Km long Coastal Road stretch will be part of the first phase of the project. It will extend from Girgaum Chowpatty to the Worli side of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. Further, the project will also include underground parking at four regions, with the largest parking space located at Haji Ali, offering parking space for up to 1,200 cars. Meanwhile, Worli and Amarsons will have parking lots that can hold up to 200 cars at a time. The authorities have also planned a Bus Rapid Transit System at Worli.
The BMC has faced criticism from the fishing community at Worli and Haji Ali for the Coastal Road Project. They claim that work on the project has impacted their livelihoods, while environmentalists believe that a thorough regional survey should have been conducted before the works began and not after.
Also read - Coastal Road: Fishermen Accuse Central Marine Institute Of Giving ‘Inaccurate Information’ In Its Study
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