All About The ‘Missing Link’ Project That Will Cut Mumbai-Pune Travel Time By 30 Minutes

Mumbai-Pune Expressway: The 13-kilometer ‘missing link’ project on the Pune-Mumbai expressway is expected to be ready by this August after seeing many delays. The project, estimated at Rs 6,600 crore, was earlier scheduled to be ready by March 2024. It was later delayed to January and then March this year. The project started in March 2019.

Officials have said that 92 per cent of the work is completed. The project will cut across the existing Mumbai-Pune Expressway and will trim the distance between the two cities by 5.7 kilometers. One ready, it will reduce the travel time by around 30 minutes.

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) took up this project to save thousands of passengers from traffic congestion. The Mumbai-Pune expressway sees an average of 60,000 vehicles per day.

There are two tunnels of length 1.67 km and 8.92 km. The tallest bridge and widest tunnel are being constructed on this missing link. There will not be any other toll to be paid for travelling through this missing link.

Key Highlights About Missing Link Project

The existing Mumbai-Pune Expressway section from the Khopoli exit to Sinhagad Institute is 19.8 km which will now become 13.3 km. 

The missing link tunnel is the widest tunnel in Asia (23.30 metres) with four lanes and one emergency lane for each tunnel.

There is a cable-stayed bridge with a length of 650 metres.

The project has been proposed to avoid the steep slope and the ghat section.

Four-lane tunnels are being constructed in each direction on the highway. The length of one of these tunnels is 8.87 km.  

Two bridges are being constructed towards Khopoli to connect these tunnels to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. 

People will still have the option of using the existing road as it will be functional.

Hazard-carrying vehicles will have to use the ghat road. The rest can use the missing link.”