Chief minister Devandra Fadnavis has said that two elevated corridors, that is the CST-Panvel and the Bandra-Virar projects, will be converted to multi-modal transport corridors and will have a parallel road running along the alignment of these corridors.
Mr Fadnavis said that the feasibility of the road was being looked into and that Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu has also said it is feasible.
“I had asked the railway minister if this plan was possible almost four months ago. The minister has just informed us that the road is feasible and we will be chalking out the plan with the railway ministry soon,” said Mr Fadnavis.
The railway minister has been asking the state to increase its own road network to take the pressure off them. “We are aware that the railway infrastructure in the city is under extreme pressure and with these roads along these two major corridors we hope to ease some of the pressure off of the railways,” he further added.
Mr Fadnavis was speaking at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Konkan Railway (KR) and the Shapoorji Pallonji Corporation for a new line between Chiplun and Karad.
This will connect the Konkan region to Western Maharastra at a cost of Rs 3,000 crore under a public-private-partnership model.
Railway officials said this plan is only beginning to be discussed and still has a long way to go.
“We had been asked about the feasibility of this plan and we have been in talks with the state to see if there is enough land to do so. We have to still work out the details but yes, we more than welcome the move, since the railways has been asking us take a more active role in transportation within Mumbai city,” said an official on the condition of anonymity.
The two corridors themselves are still waiting to be officially sanctioned by the Niti Aayog.
