Mumbai: While the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway is now fully operational, a crucial extension of the Mumbai-Nashik Highway from four to eight lanes over a 23-km stretch between Magathane and Vadpe remains incomplete — even after more than four years of work. The project, whose revised deadline was Feb 2025, continues to be behind schedule.The widening of this stretch was supposed to be completed before the Samruddhi Expressway was opened, in order to accommodate the anticipated surge in traffic. Now that the expressway is live, vehicles from Mumbai and Thane traveling towards Nashik via Samruddhi, and those from Kalyan and Bhiwandi heading to Thane and Mumbai, must pass through the still-under-construction Magathane-Vadpe stretch — worsening the already severe traffic congestion.Transport minister Pratap Sarnaik said the Eastern Express and Ghodbunder highways in Thane are prepared to handle traffic from Samruddhi, adding that the Ghodbunder Road widening project will show visible progress within six months, reducing travel time across Thane city.Bhiwandi, now a major warehousing hub, has contributed significantly to rising traffic volumes in the area. With the Samruddhi Expressway connecting to Amane near Bhiwandi, and the upcoming Mumbai-Delhi Highway also set to intersect at Amane, traffic congestion is only expected to worsen.Ramesh Khiste, section engineer at MSRDC, told TOI, “We have completed 76% of the work. The two major bridges in the project include the Kasheli bridge, which is expected to be completed by July, and the Kalwa bridge, which is likely to be finished by November. We have also completed five out of 10 underpasses, and work on the service roads is 100% complete.”However, regular commuters remain skeptical. Lal Punjabi, a resident of Ulhasnagar, said, “It now takes me one and a half hours to reach Thane from Ulhasnagar. With the Samruddhi Expressway fully open, traffic will only increase, and our daily commute is going to become even more difficult unless this highway work is completed quickly.”Social activist Srinivas Ghanekar also voiced concerns, stating, “There are already traffic jams during peak hours from Thane to Vadpe due to the incomplete work. The govt should have prioritized finishing this project before opening the Samruddhi Expressway. With the expected increase in traffic, commuters from Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan, and Bhiwandi who use this road daily will now face even more inconvenience.“Ghanekar urged the state govt to match the pace of construction on the Vadpe-Thane stretch with that of the Samruddhi Expressway, highlighting the urgent need to alleviate traffic woes in the region.(Inputs by Manoj Badgeri)
