The state government is contemplating if Dahisar-Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd and Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli metro rails should be elevated instead of making them underground as per the proposed format.
The state government is contemplating if Dahisar-Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd and Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli metro rails should be elevated instead of making them underground as per the proposed format.
At the moment, these two corridors await a nod from the state cabinet as Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has forwarded the two proposals. Sources said the state may decide to have elevated corridors.
The 40km-long Dahisar-Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd metro has an estimated cost of Rs25,605 crore as compared to Rs19,097 crore for 32km-long Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli one.
"The debate is whether to have elevated metro at a lesser price and, subsequently, have more corridors so that a mass transit system can be created, or to have limited corridors underground that are expensive," said an official.
Having an underground system also attracts more maintenance cost and is more challenging during construction stages from the engineering perspective.
A rough comparative analysis of cost shows that to have an underground metro station the state will have to spend approximately Rs150 crore as against Rs25 crore for an elevated station.
A bureaucrat said the state may decide to do away with the underground plan for the two metros (ie 2 and 5) and go for an elevated version like the Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar metro.
If elevated route is decided on, there may possibly be strong opposition from citizen groups, particularly from the western suburbs. Between 2008 and 2013, residents from western suburbs opposed the elevated Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd corridor, pushing for an underground system. Eventually, the MMRDA and state authorities agreed to their point of view. However, this may change with the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance at the helm and despite CM Devendra Fadnavis as MMRDA's chairman giving nod to both the underground metro lines (in it's 136th authority meeting) last year on November 20.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}