Mumbai To Pune in 90 Minutes: Know All About India's Longest Sea Bridge MTHL

The MTHL is a 21.8 km (6-lane) access-controlled expressway grade road bridge, which will connect Mumbai with Navi Mumbai. It will consist of 5.5 kilometres of underground tunnels on land, located on both sides and a 16.5-kilometre bridge that stretches across the sea.

The works on the 16.5 km long deck of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Sea Link (MTHL) will be completed on May 24. It is credited as the longest sea bridge in India and the 12th longest in the world.

The bridge will begin in Sewri, South Mumbai, will cross Thane Creek north of Elephanta Island, and will terminate at Chirle near Nhava Sheva. The road will be linked to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway in the east and to the under-construction Coastal Road in the west.

"Work on structures is almost complete. Tomorrow evening, at an event, we are going to connect the bridge to the mainland. The remaining work -- road laying, electrical, intelligent transport system (electronic tolling) -- will be done after the event. It is possible to achieve the target we set two years ago, to finish by December end this year," NDTV quoted SVR Srinivas, the commissioner of Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, as saying.

Billed as the 'engineering marvel', the bridge will reduce travel time between Mumbai and Pune and also to the under-construction Navi Mumbai international airport. On a daily basis, it will have the capacity to handle over 70,000 vehicles.

This bridge will reduce the travel time between Mumbai and Pune by 90 minutes. Also, it is expected to cut down travel time between Lonavala, Khandala and Mumbai.

In addition, the construction of this bridge will enhance connectivity between Mumbai and other destinations such as Goa and Nagpur.

This bridge will be the first to have an Open Road Tolling (ORT) system. It means people can drive their vehicles without slowing down to pay the toll fees.