Mumbai Metro's Thane Route Delayed By A Year, Completion Now Expected By April 2025 With Cost Escalation Of Rs 63 Crore

The Kasarwadavli-Gaimukh route 4A of Mumbai Metro in Thane, Maharashtra, initially scheduled for completion by March 2024, has been delayed, with the revised deadline now set for April 2025.

The delay has led to a cost escalation of Rs 63 crore, raising the total project expenditure to Rs 503 crore from the initially approved Rs 440 crore, according to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) in response to an RTI query.

Mumbai-based activist Anil Galgali, who filed the RTI application, raised concerns about the prolonged construction work and its impact on commuters.

"The project is a crucial alternative for commuters using the state highway. I wanted to know the status of the project execution as I have been witnessing the work to have been going on for a very long time, which was also causing massive inconvenience to commuters," Galgali told The Times of India.

"The contractor was also slapped a penalty of Rs 22 lakh, but the agency hasn't mentioned the cause of the delay in its reply," he added.

The 2.7 km-long Metro 4A route is part of the larger 56 km-long Metro corridor that aims to connect CSMT to Mira Road across four phases.

The first phase, Wadala-Kasarwadavli (Line 4), is followed by the extension to Gaimukh (Line 4A). Future phases include links to Shivaji Chowk in Mira Road (Line 10) and Wadala to GPO (CSMT) (Line 11).

Once completed, the Metro 4A route will provide a vital alternative for commuters on the state highway and facilitate seamless travel between South Mumbai and the suburbs with interchanges along the corridor.