Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) has got the permission to construct the 12 kilometer ‘Missing Link’ between Khalapur and Kusgaon on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. This will decrease the commutation time and traffic drastically.

As a part of the above project, the Expressway will get new tunnels and additional lanes that will reduce the travel time by 30 minutes. This will also give the motorists an alternative to the ghat section where the traffic is slowed down by heavy vehicles like trucks. It will also provide another alternative for the motorists to the sections which witness landslides during monsoons.    

The state urban development department granted permission to MSRDC for acquisition of land stretch that lies under Lonavala Municipal Corporation. MSRDC has got a green signal from Cabinet Committee on infrastructure. The clearance from forest department is still not sanctioned.

The project will require about 266 acres of land. Out of the total, 106 acres land is privately owned by farmers and 160 acres is forest land. The estimated expenditure for the project is about Rs. 4,798 crore. The project will commence in the month of November.

The implementation of the project will make the commutation across the highway faster and conducive.