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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has started repairing the work of the Western Express Highway (WEH) and Eastern Express Highways (EEH) after taking possession from Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).
The Western Express Highway begins at Bandra and ends at Dahisar Check Naka, whereas the Eastern Express Highway starts at Mulund and ends at Sion. The two highways have a combined length of approximately 90 km.
The civic body has allocated Rs 143 crore for repairing the WEH and Rs 92 crore for repairing the EEH. The total cost of maintenance work will be approximately Rs 235 crore.
The repair work is in full swing, and the civic body is using heavy machinery to complete the work. The contractor, Konark Construction, is doing a commendable job by using four-meter-long machines to lay asphalt on the roads.
BMC declined to take control of the WEH and EEH last year due to the MMRDA’s failure to provide cellular and advertising rights for the highways, as well as a report on their status and the liability periods of existing contractors.
BMC and MMRDA had a problem about who should be in charge of maintaining roads in Mumbai. But they worked it out, and BMC got their way. When the Shinde-Fadnavis government took over, they gave control of WEH and EEH to BMC.
Mumbai’s roads deteriorate during the monsoon, particularly the 2,000km that BMC owns and maintains. Although other entities like MSRDC, Port Trust, PWD, and MMRDA own poorly maintained roads, BMC is being singled out, according to the civic body.