Sahar Elevated Road Corridor Open to Public
The Sahar elevated road corridor that connects the Western Express Highway (WEH) and Mumbai International Airport’s new Terminal 2 is now open for motorists. The Sahar elevated corridor was inaugurated and made open to public commute on Wednesday. The elevated corridor is aimed at providing faster connectivity between the express highway and the airport.
Sahar elevated road corridor
The elevated corridor is a 3.3 km access road with 4 entries and 2 exit points. The road includes a pedestrian subway, an underpass for vehicles commuting on WEH, a tunnel and ramps connecting the airport terminal to the highway, by-passing congested roads below. Currently, commuters approaching the airport terminal have to tackle congested roads of Andheri East. The situation becomes worse during peak hour traffic, especially with the impending shift of air traffic. This corridor is being built to completely avoid traffic bottlenecks.
The corridor starts at WEH, heads east where the elevated section takes it over the Sahar Road. It further continues over the Indian Airlines Project Road till it reaches the present main approach road to the international terminal. Here, the corridor disperses into ramps leading to the terminal forecourts.
This corridor is being developed by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and the total project cost is approximately Rs. 5.7 billion (USD 87 million). The cost is approved by Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM) and is incurred by the Government of Maharashtra, the Central Government, MMRDA and the Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL).
Challenges faced
The corridor was commissioned in January 2008 and was supposed to be operational from December 2012. However, it faced several challenges such as rehabilitation of project affected families, non-availability of government department lands, shifting and relaying underground utilities and difficulties in diverting traffic. As a result, it missed several deadlines. After missing several deadlines, the highway is finally open to public commute.
Effects on real estate
The elevated road will reduce the commuting time for motorists traveling from the WEH to the airport terminal. While it took about 30-45 minutes to cross the 4-5 km stretch earlier, it will now take less than 10 minutes due to the new highway. This will significantly help frequent travelers, especially the ones living in Andheri, Vile Parle and surrounding areas. Hence, with reduced commute time, the demand from a particular segment is expected to go up with a slight increase in property prices along the entire stretch. Currently, property prices in Andheri East are in the range of Rs. 15,900-16,250 per sq.ft.
