What Was Approved

The committee cleared two major tranches of projects. The first, valued at Rs 17,036 crore, covers a 5.86-kilometre, six-lane tunnel between Gaimukh and Fountain Hotel on Ghodbunder Road and a 9.58-kilometre, six-lane elevated bridge from Fountain Hotel to Bhayandar. The second tranche, worth Rs 5,575 crore, covers Navi Mumbai Metro Line 1A (Sagar Sangam to CBD Belapur) and Metro Line 2 (Pendhar to Navi Mumbai International Airport T-4), both under CIDCO.

CM Fadnavis expressed confidence that the projects, once operational, would make the region's transport network faster and more accessible. 'पायाभूत सुविधांचे प्रकल्प कार्यान्वित होणार असल्याने वाहतूक व्यवस्था अधिक सुलभ आणि वेगवान होईल' ('Once these infrastructure projects become operational, the transport system will become more convenient and faster'), he said at the meeting.

Context: The Ghodbunder Corridor

Ghodbunder Road is one of the most congested arterial corridors in the MMR, carrying heavy volumes of passenger and freight traffic between western Mumbai suburbs, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivli, Nashik, Panvel, and National Highway 48 toward Gujarat. The approved tunnel will be constructed using Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) technology with a diameter of 14 metres and is planned for completion in approximately five years. The parallel elevated bridge, running alongside Vasai Creek, will allow traffic movement at speeds of up to 100 km/h.

The project is designed specifically to divert heavy vehicles and through-traffic headed toward Thane and Gujarat onto an alternative route, reducing pressure on the existing surface road. MMRDA has been designated as the Special Planning Authority for the project area.

Policy Backdrop: PPP and Viability Gap Funding

Both the Ghodbunder corridor projects will be implemented under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) framework using the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model. Viability Gap Funding (VGF) will be provided jointly by the central and state governments to make the projects financially viable for private bidders. This approach mirrors the standard delivery mechanism Maharashtra has used for large MMR road and tunnel projects over the past decade.

Maharashtra governments have pursued phased metro and elevated-road expansion across the MMR since the 2000s, with Cabinet infrastructure committees serving as the key approval gateway. The current approvals continue that pattern of multimodal investment linking Mumbai's western suburbs to the new airport and eastern growth corridors.

Navi Mumbai Metro: Airport Connectivity

The CIDCO-led metro approvals will create a continuous 28-kilometre metro corridor from Sagar Sangam to Navi Mumbai International Airport. Metro Line 1A adds 2 stations and Metro Line 2 adds 11 stations to the network. Once operational, the combined metro system is projected to serve approximately 12 lakh passengers daily.

The expansion directly supports the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport, providing a dedicated rail link from the CBD and coastal nodes of Navi Mumbai to the terminal. Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Ajit Pawar, along with Ministers Chandrashekar Bawankule and Uday Samant, were present at the meeting.

What's Next

The Ghodbunder tunnel and elevated road will now move toward environmental clearances, land acquisition processes, and competitive bidding under the BOT framework. For the metro lines, alignment finalisation and detailed project reports will be the immediate next steps under CIDCO's oversight. With the Navi Mumbai International Airport advancing toward operationalisation, the pace of metro corridor completion will be closely watched by commuters, developers, and the aviation sector alike.