MMRDA has reduced Uttan-Virar Coastal Road project cost by Rs 34,000 crore
The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has reduced the cost of the Uttan-Virar Coastal Road (UVCR) project by nearly Rs 34,000 crore. The fresh proposal was submitted to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at a review meeting held in Mumbai on Thursday.
According to MMRDA officials, the cost has been cut down to Rs 52,652 crore from Rs 87,427 crore after making changes in lane layouts, minimisation of the land area needed, changes in the designs of connectors, and minimisation of provisional and consultancy charges. The coastal road project to enhance connectivity between the northern suburbs of Mumbai and the western coast will now go with this 'low-cost system'.
Among the cost-cutting measures is reducing the size of the carriageways.
The initial plan offered 4+4 lanes with a main coastal stretch of an emergency lane and 3+3+1 lanes on connectors. This has now been transformed into a 3+3 lane configuration on the coastal stretch and 2+2 lanes on the connectors, resulting in the reduction of civil and structural costs. The decrease in lane width has also resulted in a smaller 'right of way' requirement, thereby reducing land acquisition costs.
The new plan is also structurally altered by using single-pier structures instead of two-pier designs, which are less expensive and require fewer materials and manpower. 'The additional savings were made through rationalisation of consultancy charges, minimising initial overheads and revising cost estimates using available infrastructure,' said a senior MMRDA official.
Uttan Virar Coastal Road will stretch to 55.12 km, which includes a 24.35 km main coastal road and 30.77 km connecting roads. The planned arrangement for the main road is a 25.1 meter-wide 3+3 lane carriageway and an 18.55 metre-wide 2+2 lane configuration for the connectors.
The project includes three key connectors — the 9.32 km Uttan Connector, linking the road to the Dahisar-Bhayandar Link Road, the 2.5 km elevated Vasai Connector, and the 18.95 km Virar Connector, connecting the corridor to the Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway. 'This alignment is expected to improve goods and passenger traffic flow between the northern suburbs and Mumbai's western coast while also integrating with larger national corridors,' the official added.
The funding proposal of MMRDA consists of Rs 37,998 crore (72.17%) as loans by JICA or other multilateral organizations, repayable in the form of toll revenue. The Maharashtra government and MMRDA will provide the balance Rs 14,654 crore (27.83%) as equity.
Fadnavis has ordered MMRDA to finalise and submit the updated Detailed Project Report (DPR) and Preliminary Project Report (PPR) to the government for approval. He has also sought a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to be established to execute the project and that all the approvals be fast-tracked.
Once operational, the road will improve transport connectivity in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and connect with the planned Vadhavan Port.
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