Bandra-Versova Sea Link extension idea turns roadblock?

Plan to extend the Bandra-Versova Sea Link till Virar may result in altering plans for coastal road. While the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is pushing for extending the 17-km-long Bandra-Versova Sea Link (BVSL) till Virar, there are chances that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) may have to alter its plan of a coastal road between Versova and Kandivali.

However, the financial viability in terms of traffic may become an issue considering two parallel roads on the same route may not be advisable, officials from MSRDC said.

“We are in talks with state government and the BMC for their plans for the coastal road till Kandivali. As we are planning an extension till Virar, there might not be a need to have the coastal road on a parallel route, but now it all depends on the state government,” said a MSRDC official.

The MSRDC is now proposing to extend the same sea-link till Virar that might result in the state government scrapping the coastal road parallel till Kandivali. Also, there were plans to extend the coastal road from Kandivali to Ghodbunder for which the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) was given the charge of preparing a feasibility report on the same.

The total length and the cost of the extension is not known yet.

A TAKE ON THE PAST

Earlier, BMC shelved the plan for a coastal road between Bandra and Versova due to strong opposition from Juhu residents over a proposed tunnel beneath the beach, which they claimed would destroy its beauty. The govt then had assigned MSRDC for a sea-link between Bandra and Versova that will go further inside the sea