Bandra Worli Sea Link, Bhiwandi
About Bandra Worli Sea Link
History
Mahim Causeway was the only road connecting the western suburbs to Mumbai's central business district. This north-southwestern corridor became a bottleneck and was highly congested at peak hours. The Western Freeway project was proposed to span the entire western coastline of Mumbai to ease congestion. The Bandra–Worli Sea-Link, a bridge over Mahim Bay, was proposed as the first phase of this freeway system, offering an alternative route to the Mahim Causeway. The Mujeeb Acharwala Bridge connects the intersection of the Western Express Highway and Swami Vivekanand Road in Bandra to the Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan Road in Worli. From Worli Seaface, it connects to Mumbai's arterial Annie Besant Road. The project was commissioned by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation Limited (MSRDC). The contract for construction was awarded to the Hindustan Construction Company (HCC), with project management led by the UK offices of Dar Al-Handasah.The foundation stone was laid in 1999 by Bal Thackeray. The original plan estimated the cost at ₹6.6 billion (US$93 million) to be completed in five years. But the project was subject to numerous public interest litigations, with the 5-year delay resulting in the cost escalating to ₹16 billion (US$220 million), with the additional interest cost alone accounting for ₹7 billion (US$98 million).