The Mumbai Pune Expressway , officially the Yashwantrao Chavan Expressway is India's first six-lane concrete, high-speed, access controlled tolled expressway.The Mumbai-Pune Expressway is one of the prestigious projects to MSRDC by Public Works Department. This aims to provide a safe and fast access between Mumbai and Pune. This 6 lane expressway extends from Kon to Dehu, a distance of 92 km. and the first of its kind in India of its size with concrete pavement, It connects the financial capital of India, and the neighboring industrial hub city of Pune. It has introduced for India new levels of speed and safety in automobile transportation.
Vehicles with fewer than four wheels and agricultural tractors are not permitted, although tractor-trailers (semi-trailer rigs are permitted). The expressway handles about 30,000 PCUs and is designed to handle up to 1,000,000 PCUs.
History & Facts:
In 1990, the Government of Maharashtra appointed RITES and Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick of United Kingdom to carry out feasibility studies for the new expressway to be operated on toll basis. RITES submitted their report in 1994 with the estimated cost of project at Rs. 1146 crores (11.46 billion rupees). The Government of Maharashtra entrusted the work of the construction of Mumbai-Pune expressway to MSRDC in March 1997 on Build-Operate-Transfer basis with permission to collect toll for 30 years. The environmental clearance from the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India was received on October 13, 1997. The Forest Clearance was received on November 11, 1997.
The tender notice was published in leading newspapers all over India and also on the Internet. Due to wide publicity, 133 tenders were sold and on December 18, 1997, 55 tenders were received. After technical and financial evaluation, tenders were accepted and work orders were given on January 1, 1998 to four contractors. Thereafter tenders for widening of Khandala and Lonavala-Khandala bypass works were invited. The tenders were received on August 24, 1998 and orders were issued on September 4, 1998.
Construction & Project Cost:
The project was completed under the stewardship of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC).
The expressway cost Rs. 16,30,00,00,000 (approx. US$ 362 million) to construct.
The first sections opened in 2000, and the entire route was completed, opened to traffic and made fully operational from April 2002.
Names of Tunnel & Length:
1) Bhatan: This tunnel opened in April 2000.The Mumbai-Pune (North) tube is 1,053 m and the Pune-Mumbai (South) tube is 1,088 m long
Bhatan Tunnel
2) Madap: This tunnel also opened in April 2000.The Mumbai-Pune (North) tube is 305.3 m and the Pune-Mumbai (South) tube is 359.3 m long.
3) Adoshi: This only has a Pune-Mumbai tube. The Mumbai-Pune carriageway skirts the eastern edge of the tunnel while the Pune-Mumbai carriageway traverses the 258 m long tunnel.
4) Khandala: This is a curved pair of tubes. The Mumbai-Pune (North) tube is 293.5 m
and the Pune-Mumbai (South) tube is 400 m long.
5) Kamshet-1:It has 2 tubes roughly 900 m each.
6) Kamshet-2:359 m
Future Expansion:
MSRDC has decided to extend the Mumbai Pune Expressway from the current endpoint of Kalamboli near Panvel and to extend it till Sion in Mumbai. The extended stretch will reduce commuting time between Mumbai and Pune by 30 minutes. Under the plan, the Sion Panvel Expressway corridor will be widened, with dedicated lanes for heavy and light vehicles. Service roads will be built for entry and exit at various points. It will also involve constructing a brand new bridge over the Thane creek parallelly to the current Vashi Mankhurd Bridge. MSRDC will undertake the expansion project. Work is expected to commence in March 2009 and complete by September 2011. The new 22-km link is expected to cost Rs 800 crore
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