Pothole-riddled Mumbai-Nashik highway poses a challenge to smooth commute to Samruddhi

Travelling the 106-km stretch from the Thane-Mulund toll naka (Mumbai Entry Point) from Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s residence in Louis wadi, Thane, up to Igatpuri takes a gruelling three hours. This stretch casts a shadow on the ambitious promise of reaching Shirdi from Mumbai via the Samruddhi Mahamarg in five hours, pushing the real travel time closer to seven or eight hours.

Endless gridlock

For Hrushab and Mitali Dahibhawkar, a couple from Borivali in Mumbai, what was meant to be a spiritual journey to Shirdi turned into a harrowing ordeal. Departing at 5.30 in the morning, they expected a smooth ride but couldn’t reach Shirdi until 12 noon.

“There was a huge traffic jam at the Bhiwandi bypass due to ongoing road work… Besides, the creek bridge is in bad condition with potholes all over,” Hrushab recounts.

The Dahibhawkars’ troubles didn’t end there. “Returning to Mumbai in the evening hours was a nightmare,” Mitali adds, reflecting the struggle faced by many commuters on this route.

Anupam and Sanjita Garud, who went to Nashik during the weekend, shared a similar plight. “The Mumbai-Nashik highway is full of potholes. The authorities have filled them with crushed stones, which is equally dangerous for motorists as they damage vehicle tyres,” says Anupam.

This makeshift solution cost Anupam additional time and money, as he had to take his vehicle to the garage on returning from Nashik. “While returning, we saw a traffic jam on the other side of the corridor towards Nashik for almost three kilometres. After seeing that, we found ourselves lucky,” he says, highlighting the persistent traffic trouble on the route.

The commute to Bhiwandi has become an ordeal. Rais Shaikh, MLA from Bhiwandi East and a member of the Samajwadi Party (SP), has expressed his frustration over the traffic chaos. In a conversation with The Indian Express, Shaikh said that his daily journey from Mumbai to Bhiwandi now takes an excruciating two hours and 30 minutes due to severe congestion exacerbated by ongoing road work.

“As a public representative, I have held numerous meetings with the authorities, but there has been no respite from the problems,” said shaikh.

Despite Shaikh’s persistent demands for solutions, including a drone survey, highway surveillance, and the deployment of traffic marshals, the congestion shows no signs of easing. “Nothing has been done so far,” he said.

Shaikh pointed out that prominent politicians have been using the highway frequently but the chaos is only worsening. “PWD Minister Dadji Bhuse, an MLA from Malegaon, frequently uses this highway, as former PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal and several MLAs and MPs from Nashik who hold significant positions in the ruling party. Despite this, the highway’s condition is appalling,” he said.

The ongoing road work and inadequate traffic management have left Bhiwandi residents and commuters grappling with a daily struggle, with no clear resolution in sight. As traffic woes persist, the call for effective measures to alleviate the gridlock grows louder, demanding urgent attention from authorities.

Even when the 701-kilometre highway is fully operational, a 30-kilometre stretch still remains a nightmare.

Highway expansion

The MSRDC is also tasked with the expansion of the old Mumbai-Nashik Highway by the end of February 2025 that aims to convert the existing four lanes of the highway between Vadape and Majiwada in Thane into an eight-lane expressway.

This 21.6-km stretch poses a series of engineering challenges, including two creek bridges (Kalwa and Kasheli) and one rail overbridge. The MSRDC reports that 60 per cent of the overall work has been completed, with significant progress on the creek bridges and the anticipated erection of rail overbridge girders within the next four months. A 17-km service road from Thane to Kasheli creek is also in the works, designed to ease traffic flow.

MSRDC managing director Anil Kumar Gaikwad highlights the strategic importance of this route, which experiences heavy traffic due to the numerous warehouses in Bhiwandi. The Bhiwandi bypass also sees heavy traffic since Mumbra highway, Godbunder highway and Pune highway traffic merge at the point, besides the commercial trucks that occupy the road. However, the work has been progressing with more than 50 per cent of main carriageway work completed.

The expansion of highway is with the Joint Venture contractor MEPL -MCL which has further sub-contracted the work to three other contractors, as per MSRDC. An official said that though the work was handed over in June 2021 by the NHAI, the work did not begin for a year due to forest clearance requirement.

The expansion project, costing approximately Rs 1,182 crore, is being executed under the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM), under which the MSRDC and the National Highway Authority of India share the initial costs, with NHAI repaying MSRDC in installments over the next 15 years.

Fixing potholes

According to an MSRDC official, on the 21.6-km stretch between Vadpe and Majiwada, traffic gets affected on around 800 metres on the Vadpe corridor due to potholes on the Nashik-Mumbai highway, while on the Nashik corridor from Mumbai, around one kilometre gets affected.

The potholes are being filled using Dense Bituminous Macadam (DBM), comprising one layer of bitumen and upper layer of waterproof mastic. As per the official, if a pothole is filled using DBM, it can sustain for four months in the monsoon.

Four cranes have been deployed at Kharegaon toll plaza and Vadpe, in case of vehicle breakdowns due to monsoon and road work, the official said.

As many as 150 traffic wardens have been deployed on this stretch, the official said, adding that the bottleneck is caused by the work at Vadpe underpass and Asangaon rail overbridge by the NHAI.

According to Dr Mohan Dahikar, IPS, superintendent of police (Thane division), from the state highway police, there are several issues contributing to the gridlock. Near Vasind, the Asangaon railway bridge is under construction, reducing the available lanes to a single one in both directions. Additionally, the flyover at Parivar Garden is riddled with potholes, and the service road at Chakradhari Hotel is marred by craters.

In an effort to mitigate the chaos, the state highway police have been deploying additional manpower to streamline traffic flow. “We are regularly following up with the road maintenance authorities to ensure potholes are filled,” says Dahikar.

As the Samruddhi Mahamarg nears full opening, the MSRDC’s efforts to improve the adjoining old highway underscore the intricate balance between ambition and reality. Travellers will soon experience the promise of the future, but not without navigating the many bumps along the road to progress.