L&T, HCC and Hyundai Engineering among dozen bidders

Larsen& Toubro, HCC and Hyundai Engineering are among the dozen firms that have bid for Mumbai’s much-awaited four-lane coastal road project. The road, to be built across nearly 10 km, will run from Princess Street in Marine Lines to the point in Worli where the Bandra Worli sea link ends. The companies have organised themselves into eight consortia. Apart from India’s L&T, HCC and Reliance Infrastructure, others that have submitted a request for qualification (RFQ) are Turkey’s Dogus Insaat Ve Ticaret AS, one of Turkey’s largest construction companies, Korea’s Daewoo, Hyundai Engineering & Construction as well as Hyundai Development Company.

The cost of the project is an estimated Rs 5,300 crore, Sanjay Mukherjee, additional municipal commissioner (projects), Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), told FE.

Mukherjee said the cost was somewhat high because of the three interchanges being planned, one each at Worli, Haji Ali and at Amarsons Garden at Breach Candy. “These are extremely complex and this is where a lot of money is being spent,” he said.

The interchanges will be built on reclaimed land with roads at multiple levels allowing the traffic to move in all directions.

Along with the three interchanges, there will also be an underpass at Haji Ali for pedestrians to walk to the dargah (tomb) and a tunnel from Priyadarshini Park to Princess Street flyover.

The project includes a dedicated track for buses, or a bus rapid transit system (BRTS). The coastal road will be 40 metres wide with an 11-metre median to accommodate high-speed trains. Dedicated lanes will be built for cyclists and pedestrians.

MCGM is currently focusing on the southern stretch of the coastal road while the Maharashtra Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is planning to build the northern stretch of the coastal road as a sea link between Bandra and Versova.

The total cost of the coastal road, up to Kandivali, is estimated by the MCGM at Rs 15,000 crore, of which the northern stretch of 19.22 km, up to Kandivali, is Rs 9,700 crore.

The project includes a dedicated track for buses, or a bus rapid transit system (BRTS). The coastal road will be 40 metres wide with an 11-metre median to accommodate high-speed trains. Dedicated lanes will be built for cyclists and pedestrians.

MCGM is currently focusing on the southern stretch of the coastal road while the Maharashtra Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is planning to build the northern stretch of the coastal road as a sea link between Bandra and Versova.

The total cost of the coastal road, up to Kandivali, is estimated by the MCGM at Rs 15,000 crore, of which the northern stretch of 19.22 km, up to Kandivali, is Rs 9,700 crore.