The long-awaited Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC)-Chunabhatti connector will be opened for motorists on Saturday after being under construction for nearly four years. The 1.6-km flyover provides motorists direct access to BKC via the Eastern Express Highway (EEH) and will potentially cut travel time by 30 minutes.
Motorists can also look forward to another key road project being completed in the coming months by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). “We are aiming to complete the flyover connecting BKC to the Bandra-Worli Sea Link by January, which will provide seamless access to motorists using the sea link,” R.A. Rajeev, Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA, said.
The project involves building two flyovers in either direction, roughly 1,888-m-long each, to decongest the Kalanagar signal by allowing vehicles from south Mumbai direct access to the business district. The MMRDA had pulled down the northbound arm of the Bandra skywalk for this project and also changed the alignment of Metro Line 2B, which will run parallel to the connector at the BKC-end.
MMRDA officials said they expect heavy traffic flow on the Chunabhatti connector with motorists using it not only to access BKC, but also to bypass key junctions at Dharavi, Kalanagar and others. In anticipation of this development, the MMRDA has created a new traffic plan with new signals in G-Block of BKC. There are also new one ways and signs put up to direct motorists to their destination.
“We are also building a road at grade using a portion of university land. The road will allow people to access the Santacruz Chembur Link Road (SCLR) much faster,” Mr. Rajeev said.
MMRDA is also building an extension to the SCLR, which will connect to Vakola Bridge, easing congestion on CST Road, which is also used by several commuters to access BKC. This project, costing around ₹450 crore, is expected to be completed by the end of 2020.