Mumbai: Mumbai has unveiled a new eight lane coastal motorway along its western shoreline. Critics describe the project as a sharp marker of inequality in a city shaped by extremes of wealth and hardship. Mumbai houses 90 billionaires alongside over six million slum residents. Around 55 percent of central Mumbai residents live in informal settlements.
The coastal road links south and west Mumbai through reclaimed land from the Arabian Sea. For private car owners, travel time has dropped from 45 minutes to around 10 minutes between Marine Drive and Worli. Drivers who once crawled at five miles per hour now move freely through tunnels and elevated stretches.
Public transport tells another story. About 64 percent of the metropolitan population of 22.5 million relies on buses and local trains. Overcrowding remains routine. Seven to ten passengers die each day on the suburban rail network.
Environmental activists and urban planners argue public funds should have strengthened buses, roads, and metro lines. They describe the project as welfare directed toward affluent residents. Educators warn the road transfers public resources toward a narrow group while placing costs on others.
Shoe shiners, vendors, and daily commuters report no change in their routines. Long train journeys without seating continue. For fishing communities along the coast, the impact feels deeper. Fishers report loss of traditional landing sites, damaged breeding grounds, higher fuel costs, and reduced catch.
Environmental experts also warn mangrove removal weakens flood protection in a city already prone to monsoon flooding. Court approval allowed removal of 45,000 mangroves for the project’s next phase.
Access to the shoreline has narrowed. Pedestrian underpasses remain few and distant. Many residents say the road blocks a shared public space once open to all.
