Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Megha Engineering & Infrastructures (MEIL) have emerged as the lowest bidders (L1) for a package each, of the 11.84 km Thane–Borivali twin tunnel project in Mumbai.

The road project by Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) will feature 2x10.8 km of road tunnels under Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), and a combined one km of approach roads at both ends. Package II involves the design and construction of 6.09-km-long Thane side twin tube road tunnel. Under Package-I, the scope includes design and construction of 5.75 km-long twin tube road tunnel, Borivali side.

The tunnels with three lanes each will be built using four mega tunnel boring machines (TBMs) at a maximum depth of 23 mtrs. below the surface, and connect Magathane’s Ekta Nagar in Borivali and Tikuji-ni-Wadi at Manpada in Thane.

The total estimated cost of the project is Rs 13,200 crore. The project will reduce the driving time between both ends to just about 15 minutes from the current 1.5 hours. MMRDA has received wildlife clearance from the National Board for Wildlife, while environmental clearance (EC) for diverting 57.02 hectares of forest area is awaited.