Work On Mumbai Metro 2A Route Completed Ahead Of Schedule

Mumbai will finally have faster north-south connectivity if all goes as planned. The construction work on the Mumbai Metro 2A route is now over and the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation may begin trial runs by January 2021. The route may be opened for public use, by May 2021. Although the route was slated to be opened in 2020, the digging and tunnelling work delayed the project. Now, as per the new deadlines, the project is ahead of schedule as the girders were to be launched only in November but due to the Coronavirus lockdown, the work was fast-tracked. 

Metro 2 (DN Nagar-Bandra-Mankhurd)

Metro 2A (DN Nagar-Dahisar) - The construction work is already completed. The corridor will have 17 stations and is expected to get operational by May 2021. The route will pass through Dahisar, Anand Nagar, Rushi Sankul, IC Colony, Eksar, Don Bosco, Shimpoli, Mahavir Nagar, Kamraj Nagar, Charkop, Malad Metro, Kasturi Park, Bangur Nagar, Goregaon Metro, Adarsha Nagar, Shastri Nagar and DN Nagar.

Metro 2B (DN Nagar- Mankhurd) - MMRDA has appointed Simplex Infrastructures to design and construct the 12-km-long elevated stretch on the DN Nagar to Mankhurd Metro-2B Corridor. This elevated stretch, to be constructed at a cost of Rs 1,080 crore, is a part of the 23.5-km long corridor, and will have eleven stations.  These stations include ESIC Nagar, Prem Nagar, Indira Nagar, Old Airport, Khira Nagar, Saraswat Nagar, National College, Bandra (W) , MMRDA Office, Income Tax Office and BKC. There are 22 stations on the DN Nagar to Mankhurd Metro-2B Corridor.

Metro 3 (Colaba-Bandra-Seepz) - The entire corridor is built underground and will be 33km long with 27 stations. The original deadline for this route was 2016 but is expected to get completed by December 2021. According to the recent media reports, the work has finished on this line as well. 

Metro 4 (Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane) - Metro Phase IV would be extended to Gaimukh in Thane where Metro Phase II from Dahisar will be extended to complete the ring in the north. In the island city, Phase  IV in Wadala would be extended to GPO in the south. On December 27, the extension of this route received approval from the Maharashtra Cabinet. The authorities are planning to complete this project by March 2022, benefitting over 8.7 lakh commuters.

Metro 5 (Kapurbawdi-Bhiwandi-Kalyan) - MMRDA is in the process of selecting contractors and general consultant for the project after the project was approved in October 2017. The project is expected to be completed by 2022.

Metro 6 (Lokhandwala- Jogeshwari- Vikhroli- Kanjurmarg) -This corridor will provide interchange with Metro II at Infinity Mall in Andheri, with Metro III at SEEPZ, with Metro IV and the Mumbai Suburban Railway at Jogeshwari and Kanjurmarg, and with Metro VII at JVLR

Metro 7 (Dahisar-Andheri via Western Express Highway) - Construction work to start soon. Dahisar would be connected to Andheri and DN Nagar via two different lines out of which DN Nagar would be further extended to Mankhurd in Phase IIB. 

Metro 8 (Wadala- GPO) - With an estimated ridership of 3 lakh, this will be an 8-km stretch that would connect metro line IV to III.

Metro 9 (Dahisar-Mira Bhayander) - The proposed Metro of Dahisar to Meera-Bhayandar will cut down approximately 30 km of travel distance between the Mira-Bhayandar and Mumbai suburbs. It will be completed by 2022-23.

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone for the three metro lines- 10, 11 and 12 on September 7, 2019. While the Metro 10 and 12 will connect the metropolitan region, line 11 will connect south Mumbai with central suburb Wadala. 

Metro 10 (Gaimukh-Shivaji Chowk) : It will be a 9.2 km route  and will have four elevated stations in Mira Road area. This line will be built at a cost of Rs 4,476 crores and is expected to be completed by March 2022.

Metro 11 (Wadala-CST) : This line will be 12.7 kms long, of which 8.7 kilometres would be underground, the rest elevated.

Metro 12 (Kalyan-Taloja) : This elevated route will be 20.7 kms long and have 17 stations. It will cost Rs 5,865 crore and is scheduled for completion by March 2024.

Impact on real estate

In 2014, when the Metro became operational in Mumbai for a short distance between Versova and Ghatkopar, the property prices jumped up to 400 per cent, according to some of the prominent global consultants. The upcoming Metro network coupled with new infrastructural development would further benefit the extended suburban areas. Localities that would benefit the most from the arrival of the Metro include Dahisar, Mira Road and Bhayander.

Dahisar, for instance, is an area where a number of prominent real estate developers launched their luxury projects to attract the upper-middle class segment but failed to keep up the momentum due to poor connectivity, infrastructure, and semi-developed neighborhood.  The Metro would change that. Apart from this, property prices in Mira Road and Bhayander, which are classified as the affordable pockets of Mumbai suburban region, will shoot up and benefit investors who are seeking rental returns from their investment. Currently, property prices in Bhayander range from Rs 6,000-8,000 sqft while property prices in Mira Road is Rs 5,500-7,700 per sqft. 

As the pressure over the existing infrastructure of local railway network would stablise, the citizens would get the convenience to travel to south Mumbai avoiding traffic, usual delays and crowd.

Also read: Top Localities To Buy Home For Rs 1 Crore In Mumbai