After years of anticipation, the construction of the much-awaited flyover at Turbhe Store officially commenced on Friday. The initiation of the project has led to a strategic alteration in traffic flow on the Thane-Belapur route. Tirupathi Kakade, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai Traffic Department, inspected the construction site on Friday and directed traffic police to implement measures to prevent congestion on the crucial route.

Accompanying Deputy Commissioner Kakade were Assistant Police Commissioner of Traffic Branch Sunil Bonde, Senior Police Inspector of Turbhe Traffic Branch Shrikant Dharne, Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Executive Engineer Subhash Sonwane, former corporator Suresh Kulkarni, and other officials.

The significance of this project lies in addressing the safety concerns of the over 70,000 residents of Turbhe stores and the 25,000 workers commuting from Turbhe railway station to MIDC through Turbhe stores. Crossing the busy Thane-Belapur road has been perilous for residents, resulting in more than 20 fatalities and over 40 people becoming disabled.

Initially, residents had demanded a skywalk, prompting the municipal corporation to propose two skywalks. However, due to subsequent cancellations, residents intensified their protests, leading to the municipal corporation undertaking the construction of a flyover. The commencement of work follows the Chief Minister's directive to address the longstanding issue.

As the construction activity on the flyover begins, traffic changes have been implemented for heavy vehicles on the Thane-Belapur route. Heavy vehicles traveling from Thane to Belapur will now divert left from Agnishamak junction at Pawne village, proceeding via MIDC from Mycar Showroom. Similarly, heavy vehicles from Belapur to Thane will follow a designated route, turning left at Indiranagar Circle from Turbhe Naka.

Mr. Kakade emphasized the importance of motorists adhering to traffic police instructions, as the alterations are expected to remain in effect until the completion of the flyover. The construction contract for the flyover at Turbhe Stores has been awarded to M. Mahaveer, with a budget of Rs. 32 crore allocated for the 18-month project duration.

Residents expressed gratitude to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Municipal Commissioner Rajesh Narvekar for finally initiating the long-awaited flyover construction, potentially preventing further accidents and saving lives in the future.