Cabinet clears Metro 2B, Metro 4 projects

The state Cabinet, chaired by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, on Tuesday gave its nod to two Metro corridors —Metro 2B and Metro 4 — in Mumbai. Both corridors, to be built for over Rs 25,000 crore, are expected to reduce the city’s transport woes to a large extent, along with saving a lot of time and fuel.

The 23.5-km D.N. Nagar-Bandra-Mankhurd Metro 2B corridor will be built at a cost of `10,986 crore. It will have 22 stations and is likely to have a daily ridership of over 8 lakh by 2021.

The 32-km-long Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli Metro 4 corridor will be constructed at a cost of Rs 14,549 crore. It will have 32 stations and is expected to have a daily ridership of 8.7 lakh by 2021-22. Six-coach trains will carry 1,800 commuters per trip on both corridors.

The cabinet cleared detailed project reports (DPRs) of both corridors. Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) will be the implementing agency for the projects.

Nitin Karir, principal secretary, urban development department (1), said, “The Maharashtra government plans to develop a Metro network of 172 km in the city by 2021. With these projects, we plan to connect areas which are not accessible by railways. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and World Bank have both shown interest in funding the projects.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to attend the foundation stone laying ceremony for the corridors during his visit to Mumbai in October.