Mumbai: The BMC is set to open a new vehicular underpass (VuP) in early May to ease southbound traffic from Worli and Prabhadevi to Nariman Point. This will be the second underground road of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project (MCRP), apart from the 2-km-long undersea tunnels that run between Marine Drive and Priyadarshini Park.
The underpass will also offer a direct link from the Sewri-Worli Connector to the coastal road for better access to the western suburbs and southern Mumbai.
A new 550-meter-long, 11-meter-wide underpass is under construction in Worli using the Austrian Tunneling Method. The tunnel will run beneath Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Road, parallel to the Worli Seaface, beginning at JK Kapur Chowk and exiting near Bindu Madhav Thackeray Chowk.
Designed exclusively for southbound traffic, it will offer a faster route for vehicles traveling from Dadar, Prabhadevi, and Worli towards the Coastal Road, Bandra, and Nariman Point. The underpass will connect to two arms of the Worli Interchange—one leading to the Bandra-Worli Sea Link (BWSL) and the other towards Marine Drive via MCRP.
Mumbai Coastal Road Project's new underpass in Worli aims to streamline traffic towards Nariman Point and the western suburbs | File Photo
“The underpass will allow vehicles coming from the Sewri-Worli Connector to easily reach the western suburbs and southern Mumbai via the Coastal Road, cutting down travel time. The underpass work is nearly complete and will be open for traffic in the next 8 to 10 days,” said a civic official.
The 10.58-km Coastal Road project, costing Rs. 13,000 crores, stretches from the Princess Street Flyover at Marine Drive to the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. In addition, a 7.5-km Marine Drive-style promenade with jogging tracks, seating areas, and green zones will open soon for public, running from Priyadarshini Park to Worli.
As part of this initiative, Tata Sons Limited is beautifying the median along a 4.35-km stretch from Priyadarshini Park to Worli using Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds.
