With construction work on the sixth Metro line, namely Lokhandwala-Vikhroli Metro-6, starting by this year-end in the city, traffic movement on major arterial roads like Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR) and roads in Powai and Lokhandwala will get affected due to barricading and diversions.
Currently, traffic diversions and restrictions are already in place at several locations in south Mumbai, Link Road, LBS Marg and Western and Eastern Express Highways where construction work of around five Metro lines are on.
Last week the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), which is executing Metro-6 on behalf of Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), appointed civil construction contractor J Kumar Infraprojects for executing Metro-6 work between Lokhandwala and Mahakali Caves. For rest of the stretch, two different contractors will be appointed.
A DMRC official said, “Barricading will be done on several stretches, including JVLR and Powai Lake that will occupy one or even two lanes of the road on several stretches. For this, traffic wardens will also be deployed, and a traffic diversion plan will also be submitted to Mumbai traffic police by year-end before the actual barricading work starts.”
The Metro-6 corridor will help increase western-eastern connectivity of the city on the lines of Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar Metro-1 corridor that witnesses around 3.55 lakh ridership daily on weekdays.
The work on corridor will be completed by 2021 and more than 6 lakh people are expected to use it daily.
The ridership will get major boost as the Metro-6 corridor will also be interconnected with four Metro corridors, including the Colaba-Seepz Metro-3 corridor, Dahisar East-Andheri East Metro-7 corridor and two more corridors.
SHORT-TERM LOSS FOR LONG-TERM GAIN
- Traffic diversions and restrictions are already in place at several locations in south Mumbai, Link Road, LBS Marg and Western and Eastern Express Highways
- Metro-6 corridor will help increase western-eastern connectivity of the city on the lines of Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar Metro-1 corridor
