MUMBAI: Even though the entire stretch of Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Expressway, connecting Mumbai and Nagpur, is yet to open, the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) will start collecting more toll from April 1.
Driving on this expressway will become dearer by up to 20%. Currently, the per km toll rate stands at ₹1.73 for light motor vehicles, ₹2.79 for light motor commercial vehicles, ₹5.85 for heavy vehicles having 2 axles, ₹6.38 for heavy vehicles with 3 axles, ₹9.18 for heavy construction machinery, and ₹11.17 for oversized vehicles having 7 or more axles.
As per the revised per km toll chart, ₹2.06 will be levied on light motor vehicles, ₹3.32 on light motor commercial vehicles, ₹6.97 on heavy vehicles having 2 axles, ₹7.60 on heavy vehicles with 3 axles, ₹10.93 on heavy construction machinery, and ₹13.30 on oversized vehicles having 7 or more axles.
“A public notice has been issued on the scheduled hike in toll rates,” an MSRDC official said. When asked about the opening date of the balance 76 km of the expressway towards Mumbai, the official shared that the section is ready and will be opened soon.
On December 11, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated 520 km of the expressway between Nagpur and Shirdi. Later, another 105 km was opened by the then chief minister Eknath Shinde on May 23, 2023, from Shirdi to Bharvir. Without any political event, another 25 km (between Bharvir and Igatpuri) was opened for motorists on March 4, 2024, leaving only the last 76 km up to Amane near Bhiwandi to be opened.
At Amane, the expressway connects with the under-construction Mumbai-Vadodara Expressway, which links Jawaharlal Nehru Port at one end and Gujarat on the other. “For now, a temporary provision has been made to let vehicles move between Mumbai-Nashik Highway and Samruddhi Expressway,” the official said.
First announced in November 2015, the construction of this greenfield expressway commenced in February 2019. The construction was split into 16 packages. Toll will be collected for a tenure of 40 years.