Mumbai’s Rs 8,056 crore Orange Gate–Marine Drive Tunnel project has reached an important milestone, with 650 metres of tunnel excavation now completed on the 9.239-kilometre underground road link.
Once complete, the tunnel will connect Orange Gate near P’DeMello Road with Marine Drive, cutting travel time between the two points to approximately five minutes and reducing journey times on some routes by 20–30 minutes. The project is designed to ease traffic pressure on busy surface roads in South Mumbai, where the Eastern Freeway currently ends at Orange Gate, causing congestion during peak hours.
The tunnel will comprise two bores, each with an inner diameter of around 11 metres, two lanes of 3.2 metres width each, an emergency lane and a 0.6-metre raised footpath. Design speed is 80 kmph with a minimum vertical clearance of 5.5 metres. The deepest sections will run approximately 52 metres below ground to safely pass beneath railway lines, metro corridors, buildings and other structures.
Two large Tunnel Boring Machines will be used for the main underground sections, alongside cut-and-cover work and approach ramps at both ends. The TBM-bored tunnel length is approximately 6.51 km. The overall construction period is 54 months, with the project expected to handle around 14,650 vehicles per day by 2029.
The tunnel alignment will cross the Harbour Line, Western Railway near Charni Road, and the proposed Metro Lines 11 and 3, before ending near Wankhede Stadium on Marine Drive.
