Tanker crash, 12-hour jams and no escape: Why the Mumbai–Pune Expressway keeps failing commuters

Why does an accident in this stretch cause such large-scale disruption?

The Khandala ghat section is the most vulnerable part of the expressway. It has sharp curves, steep gradients, tunnels and heavy tourist traffic bound for Lonavala and Khandala. It also carries fuel tankers and vehicles transporting hazardous chemicals. When an accident involving such vehicles occurs, traffic has to be stopped completely for safety reasons. With no parallel high-capacity alternative route, vehicles pile up quickly on both the expressway and the old highway, leading to long traffic jams.

Q) What is the history of the Mumbai–Pune Expressway?

The Mumbai–Pune Expressway was India’s first six-lane, access-controlled concrete expressway and was opened in the early 2000s. Built by the MSRDC, it reduced travel time between Mumbai and Pune from nearly five hours to around two and a half hours. The expressway boosted trade, industry and tourism between the two cities and spurred development in areas such as Khopoli, Lonavala and Talegaon. However, the ghat section between Khopoli and Kusgaon remained problematic from the start because it cuts through the Western Ghats and follows a winding hill alignment.

Q) Why is expansion of the expressway considered necessary?

Traffic volumes on the expressway have far exceeded what it was designed for two decades ago. Weekend tourist traffic, container trucks and hazardous material carriers all converge on the same ghat stretch. This makes the route accident-prone and highly sensitive to any disruption. Even a single breakdown or crash can paralyse or slow traffic for hours, as seen in the tanker accident. To address this structural weakness, planners proposed bypassing the ghat section altogether rather than trying to widen or straighten it.

Q) What is the Mumbai–Pune Expressway Missing Link project?

The Missing Link is a new 13.3 km alignment between Khopoli and Kusgaon that will replace the existing 19.8 km ghat stretch. Instead of passing through Lonavala and Khandala, the new route cuts through hills and across deep valleys using tunnels, viaducts and a cable-stayed bridge. The project includes a tunnel of about 1.64 km from the Khopoli side, followed by a 650 metre cable-stayed bridge across Tiger Valley and another long tunnel of about 8.9 km leading towards Kusgaon. Work on the project began in 2019 and was originally scheduled for completion in 2022 but was delayed due to the Covid pandemic and engineering challenges. It is now expected to open around May 2026.

Q) Why was the Missing Link considered necessary?

At present, vehicles must negotiate steep slopes and sharp curves through Lonavala and Khandala, a stretch that is both accident-prone and heavily congested during weekends and holidays. The Missing Link will bypass this section entirely. By providing a straighter and shorter route, it aims to remove through-traffic from the ghat section and reduce pressure caused by tourist vehicles heading to hill stations.

Q) How will the Missing Link help commuters once it opens?

The new alignment will shorten the distance between Mumbai and Pune by about 6 km and reduce travel time by roughly 30 minutes. By diverting traffic away from the winding ghat road, it is expected to lower accident risk and prevent long traffic jams caused by breakdowns or crashes in the hills. The approach road from the Mumbai side is also being widened from six lanes to eight lanes, which will help manage traffic volume more efficiently. Officials say that except for local vehicles and some hazardous cargo carriers, most long-distance traffic will shift to the Missing Link.

Q) What safety and technology features will the expanded route have?

The tunnels will be equipped with fire control systems using water misting, automated traffic monitoring, variable speed limit systems, automatic number plate recognition cameras and voice evacuation systems. These are intended to improve emergency response and reduce fatalities in case of accidents. The design also avoids sharp curves and steep slopes, allowing vehicles to maintain steadier speeds.

Q) What does the latest traffic jam reveal about the expressway’s limitations?

The tanker accident has again exposed how dependent the Mumbai–Pune corridor is on a single vulnerable ghat stretch. Until the Missing Link opens, any major accident in this section can bring traffic to a halt for hours and leave commuters stranded without basic facilities. Once the new alignment becomes operational, authorities expect such large-scale disruptions to become far less frequent, offering commuters a faster, safer and more reliable journey between Maharashtra’s two largest cities.