Mumbai, Sep 12 (IANS): Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday inaugurated the south-bound arm bridge connecting the Mumbai Coastal Road (MCR) to Bandra-Worli Sea Link. Shinde, who was accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, said that it will be a game-changer project for Mumbai which will make the travel of Mumbaikars pleasant, fast, comfortable and time-saving.
The Chief Minister said that due to this project, the journey from Marine Drive to Bandra Sea Link will be completed in just 10 minutes.
The traffic on the North Channel from the 827-metre-long bridge on the South Channel connecting the Bandra-Worli sea bridge will be opened for vehicular traffic from Friday, and it will be functional from Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
The Chief Minister said that the MCR project will be further extended to Versova, Bhayander and Virar.
"In future, the distance of 3-4 hours from Mumbai to Versova will be covered in just 40 to 50 minutes. The fishing community's interests have been safeguarded while constructing the bridge which was inaugurated today. This project will further go up to Palghar and the construction of Vadhvan port will also benefit from this coastal road. Along with making Mumbai pothole-free, all the roads will be made of concrete. All measures have been taken to make Mumbai free from traffic jams and reduce pollution," he added.
Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that after Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power, all permissions have been received for the Mumbai Coastal Road project.
"During the tenure of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the work for this project has been done very fast. Nearly 92 per cent of the work for this project has been completed, and the remaining work is also being completed soon," he added.
According to the Chief Minister's Office, a 9.29 km road from Worli to Marine Drive was launched on March 11 this year, the 6.25 km road from Marine Drive to Lotus Junction on June 10 and connecting 3.5 km road between Haji Ali and Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan on July 11.
The project aims to complete the main bridge on the North Channel connecting the Bandra-Worli Sea Bridge and the Worli Interchange by December 2024 while the remaining works at Haji Ali Interchange (route number 1, 6 and 7) are targeted to be completed by March 2025.