Breach Candy Traffic Woes Intensify with Coastal Road Interchange Challenges

April 2024, Mumbai:

In South Mumbai's Breach Candy area, the introduction of the nearby interchange on the Mumbai Coastal Road has led to significant traffic congestion, leaving residents troubled. Despite the Coastal Road's benefits, locals argue that a planning oversight, particularly the lack of direct interchange access, has compounded their daily commutes.

Increased Traffic Strain

Breach Candy, a crucial entry point to the Mumbai Coastal Road, is now a hotspot for commuter frustration. Morning traffic snarls, forcing residents to undertake cumbersome U-turns to reach the interchange, have become a commonplace issue, leading to delays in what should be short trips.

Calls for Traffic Solutions

The situation has prompted members of the Breach Candy Area Locality Management to highlight the exacerbated congestion on Bhulabhai Desai Road, attributing it to the area's dense mix of hospitals, schools, and commercial spaces. The presence of the interchange has left the road "choc-a-block," with reported instances of ambulances struggling to navigate the traffic. The community is urgently calling for enhanced traffic management solutions, recounting experiences where motorists spent 25 minutes to cover a mere half-kilometer.

Despite improvements to traffic flow on Peddar Road, Breach Candy residents find that their traffic situation has worsened due to the interchange's location. They have reported their concerns to authorities, hoping for a resolution.

The southern arm of the Mumbai Coastal Road, inaugurated last month, promises signal-free travel from Worli sea face to Marine Drive in just nine minutes — a journey that previously took over 40 minutes. Officials are optimistic that the traffic situation will ameliorate once the entire road is fully operational.

Interchange and Operational Details

With two of the three interchanges - at Breach Candy and Worli - now functional, motorists have direct access to the coastal route. Notably, the Breach Candy interchange leads to twin tunnels, emerging at Marine Drive. The Coastal Road's current operational hours are from 8 am to 8 pm, with the Worli entry closing at 5 pm.