Maharashtra government gives nod to cost hike in subway widening project, work to start soon.

Two subways on Western Express Highway will soon be widened for the state government finally gave its nod to increase the project cost, which had been pending for a long time. The two subways are in Andheri and Jogeshwari.

Last week, a government resolution was approved on increasing the project cost from Rs. 7.5 crore to Rs. 17.41 crore for the subway off Janta Colony, Jogeshwari. Similarly, the subway on the highway at Parsi Panchayat Road in Andheri too has got a nod to hike its cost from Rs.10 crore to Rs.20.27 crore.

The public works department had floated tenders way back in 2013 to widen the subways, but the bids it had received were much more. The quotations by contractors were 38% more than the reserve price. Thus, approval from the finance department was needed.

The plan is to widen the subway in Andheri from the present 9.5 metres to 30 metres and the one in Jogeshwari from eight metres to 20 metres. This, however, will mean traffic snarls on the arterial WEH while construction is carried out over the next one-and-a-half years.

The two subways are important for people to cross the highway without interfering with the highway traffic. However, due to lack of foresight in the planners, when the highway was widened a decade ago, resulted in narrow subways, creating problems for motorists.

DNA