One lane of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway towards Pune was shut down from Monday till March 11 as the authorities have begun maintenance work at the Khandala Tunnel.
A 300-metre section between Amrutanjan Bridge and Khandala tunnel has potentially loose boulders and scree – posing a threat to commuters.
As expected, the closure of the lane lead to traffic snarls on the busy highway.
The MSRDC has deployed police security and volunteers to help commuters in traffic blockages as the road ahead of the bridge is narrow.
The expressway authority has made arrangements to divert the traffic to the old Mumbai-Pune highway if the situation goes out of control on the expressway.
An Expressway control staffer said, “In case of jams, traffic will be diverted to the old Mumbai-Pune highway. We suggest motorists drive slowly while passing through the tunnel. The work site will have adequate lighting and manpower, generator back up, an ambulance and a fire tender to tackle an untoward incident if any.”
MSRDC had last month removed the loose boulders on the route to prevent the landslides.
On Saturday, an oil spill from a tanker resulted in disruption of vehicular traffic along Mumbai-Pune expressway.
The accident had led to a massive traffic jam, inconveniencing lakhs of commuters.
