India coastal road sets tunnel boring record

The project aims to ease congestion in Mumbai (Photo: Adobe Stock)

Larsen & Toubro, an India-based infrastructure development company, has announced that their Slurry Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) has achieved a world record for monthly lengths by excavating 456m on the Mumbai Coastal Road Project (MCRP).

The TBM was delivered during the pandemic which meant that external experts could not travel. The team assembled the 2,500 tonne TBM themselves using ‘virtual’ assistance and lowered the machine into the shaft in fully assembled form.

The first phase of the MCRP is a 9.98km section from Princess Street Flyover at Marine Lines to the Worli end of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link (BWSL) in Mumbai and also involves seafront development – this has been reported to be the first-of-its-kind in India. 

The project also includes the construction of a 2km long twin bored tunnel. On completion it will be the largest and deepest bored road tunnel in India.