Commuters highlight lack of progress in Metro line on Badlapur - Ghansoli - Kanjurmarg route | Mumbai news - Hindustan Times
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Commuters highlight lack of progress in Metro line on Badlapur - Ghansoli - Kanjurmarg route

By, Kalyan
Mar 25, 2022 10:31 PM IST

As the work of other Metro lines has commenced, the commuters from Badlapur and Dombivli cities have highlighted the requirement for expediting the implementation of Metro line 14 namely the Badlapur – Ghansoli - Kanjurmarg route; commuters from Badlapur, Ambernath, Kalyan and Dombivli have to either rely on Central and Harbour Railway lines or Roadways to commute to Navi Mumbai or Mumbai

As the work of other Metro lines has commenced, the commuters from Badlapur and Dombivli cities have highlighted the requirement for expediting the implementation of Metro line 14 namely the Badlapur-Ghansoli- Kanjurmarg route.

Expediting the work on Metro line 14 along Badlapur – Ghansoli - Kanjurmarg route is the need of the hour, feel the commuters, who have to spend hours commuting by road and suburban trains. (For representational purposes only) (HT FILE PHOTO)
Expediting the work on Metro line 14 along Badlapur – Ghansoli - Kanjurmarg route is the need of the hour, feel the commuters, who have to spend hours commuting by road and suburban trains. (For representational purposes only) (HT FILE PHOTO)

Hundreds of commuters from cities like Badlapur, Ambernath, Kalyan and Dombivli have to either rely on Central and Harbour Railway lines or Roadways to commute to Navi Mumbai or Mumbai. These are not only time consuming but also saturated modes of transport, and a Metro connectivity is the need of the hour, claimed the residents.

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A commuter from Dombivli who had initiated a petition for this Metro line in 2019 has now expressed that the authority has not taken up the work of the Metro line 14 on priority and the commute between these cities would get worse in the coming years.

“We cannot wait for another 10 years for this Metro line. At least within the next 5-6 years this line should be made available. The authority should take up the work of this line at the earliest as it is the need of the hour. This will not only help people have an alternate option for travelling but also help reduce the burden on the Central and Harbour lines,” said Vedant Mhatre, a 23-year-old student from Dombivli who initiated the petition online and got around 850 responses.

“People are still supporting the petition online. We have been following this up. However, we don’t see any progress on this project even after three years. The petition helped in bringing it to the notice of the authority and immediately they decided to take the Metro line between Badlapur- Ghansoli–Kanjurmarg, after which there is no progress,” he added.

In 2019, MMRDA took note of the online petition and planned the Mumbai Metro Line (Badlapur-Ghansoli-Kanjurmarg) in a view of better mobility between the Dombivli-Badlapur belt in Thane District and the job centres of Navi Mumbai and Mumbai.

“In all these years, we have been waiting to hear from the authorities about the project. There is no clarity if they were planning to implement it or not, or if there is any other alternate plan for transportation on this route. The crowd in local trains and the congestion on the roads is getting worse day by day,” said Saurabh Patil, a 32-year-old commuter who travels to Ghansoli from Kalyan daily for work.

“We are extremely disappointed with the lack of urgency shown by the MMRDA. Commencing work on the Metro line can cater to the travel demands in the Dombivli-Badlapur belt towards offices in Navi Mumbai and Greater Mumbai,” said Mhatre.

Residents also have demanded not to carry out the Metro line 14 on Public Private Participation (PPP) basis as it would be expensive for the commuters and also time consuming for implementation.

MMRDA commissioner, SVR Srinivas, said, “Right now, the focus is on the Metro lines 10, 11 and 12 while only the planning of the Badlapur-Ghansoli-Kanjurmarg line is done. As of now, we have not decided to take this line work under PPP as it is still in the initial stage of planning. We will decide on it as per the requirement. The project will surely happen in the future considering the need for transportation. We have still not started work on Metro line 14.”

Lata Argade, general secretary, Suburban Railway Commuters Association, said, “It is very time consuming for one to connect to Navi Mumbai from Badlapur or Kalyan through local trains. If there is a disruption, one is stuck in traveling for hours. The alternative mode of transportation should be implemented without any delay. The Metro line 14 will be a direct connection for the commuters to Navi Mumbai. The population in these cities are rapidly increasing, however there are no proper means of transportation available.”

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