The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) plans to extend Dahisar (East) to Andheri (East) metro right up to Bandra along the Western Express Highway, but the airport runway will pose a challenge because of which it is unlikely to get a nod from the ministry of civil aviation to have an elevated line at Vile Parle-Santa Cruz section.
The earlier plans for an elevated Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd metro corridor had hit a hurdle on SV Road at Vile Parle and Santa Cruz as the airstrip of Juhu Aerodrome was right next to the line and infringing the air funnel. A similar situation has arisen for the planned extension on the Western Express Highway.
Air funnel or flight path is pre-defined and needs to be unrestricted even in its buffer space for safety reasons. There is also restriction over height of buildings wherever there is an airstrip.
"A Detailed Project Report (DPR) on the extension is being prepared and various options will be looked into before anything is finalised," said Sanjay Sethi, additional metropolitan commissioner of MMRDA.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is preparing DPR for this planned extension as well as for other metro alignment.
Additionally, it is also being contemplated to route the Dahisar East-Andheri East-Bandra line via Domestic Airport, but the plan is in nascent stage at the moment.
According to another official if the plan is feasible it will have to be underground between Vile Parle and Santa Cruz. However, the majority of the route will remain elevated as it is cheaper as compared to an underground system.
However, the other challenge that will have to be brainstormed is overlapping or parallel route of this metro with underground 32-km long Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ metro line. Stations for this line would be at Bandra (income tax office), University of Mumbai in Kalina, Santa Cruz and domestic airport.
There are also plans of having a metro line between Dahisar-DN Nagar-Bandra-Mankhurd on the western side of this suburb.
The MMRDA has already given a nod to implement Dahisar East-Andheri East metro line and it will be sent to the state cabinet for further approval.
