Old Mumbai-Pune highway to be expanded to six lanes, estimated cost ₹6,000 crore

A plan has been announced to expand the old Mumbai-Pune highway (NH-48) to six lanes. According to a News18 report, the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) invited tenders on Friday to appoint project consultants to prepare a detailed blueprint and feasibility report for this project. The tenders for the project will be released on Monday.

This expansion project will cover a total area of 111 km from Nigdi to Shilphata. The estimated budget for the entire project has been kept between ₹5,000 crore and ₹6,000 crore. Under this plan, new bypass roads and routes will be included around the Lonavala and Khandala ghat sections to reduce traffic congestion.

As per the current situation, the capacity of the old Mumbai-Pune highway is 40,000 vehicles, but currently, approximately 70,000 vehicles pass through here daily. The highway is being expanded to six lanes due to the increasing pressure of vehicles. With the implementation of this project, the timeline for toll collection will be extended. An additional 10 to 15 years will be added to the toll collection window, meaning toll will remain active until 2045 or 2050.

During the construction of the six lanes on the old Mumbai-Pune highway, some alternative routes have been suggested for commuters. The most direct option is the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, which is 148 km long and takes approximately 2 hours and 50 minutes in normal traffic. The main advantage of this route is that it keeps commuters completely separate from the expansion work underway on the old highway, although both routes meet near the main ghat bypass.

For commuters starting from South or Central Mumbai, the MTHL (from Sewri to Chirle) is an excellent option, which merges directly onto the Mumbai-Pune Expressway via NH 348. This route allows one to avoid the internal traffic of Navi Mumbai city and the initial construction areas around Shilphata.

In another option, one can reach Khandala from Navi Mumbai via Chowk, Karjat, Kasara Ghat, or Matheran foothills, or reach Talegaon directly via rural state highways. This route will be particularly useful when heavy traffic jams or blockages occur during the six-lane expansion work in the Lonavala and Khandala sections.

Furthermore, commuters can go towards Pen or Pali via the Mumbai-Goa highway (NH-66), and from there reach Pune through rural western areas via state highways. This route completely bypasses the Mumbai-Pune transport corridor, but it significantly increases travel time and distance.