Maha govt plans to ease congestion on Mumbai-Agra highway

Heavy traffic jams on the Mumbai-Agra highway stretch between Bhiwandi bypass and Vadpe have prompted the state government to plan a series of decongestion measures here.State PWD minister Dada Bhuse, who recently chaired a meeting with officials of different departments, told TOI, “I have asked the agencies concerned to deploy traffic wardens on this stretch and plug the illegal openings on road dividers.” He said the traffic wardens would regulate the traffic and ensure that there are no jams.The Mumbai-Agra highway witnesses a heavy flow of vehicular traffic mainly from Nashik going towards Mumbai.SP Mohan Dahikar, of the State Highway Police, Thane region, said, “There are many warehouses along the Bhiwandi-Vadpe stretch of the highway. Therefore, the movement of heavy vehicles, including trucks and containers, is constant here. Transporters have also created several illegal openings on the road dividers to allow vehicles to move from one side of the highway to the other. The work to close these openings or cuts is currently underway.”Frequent travellers from Nashik have been demanding proper traffic management on the Bhiwandi bypass and Vadpe stretches as it takes almost six-seven hours to reach Mumbai — a distance that can be covered in three hours. The road widening work on the Vadpe-Thane stretch is also adding to the motorists’ woes.Dahikar, said MSRDC, which is undertaking the road-widening work, will be providing more than 25 wardens to regulate the traffic.