Mumbai, Feb 13 (IANS): Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday inaugurated the Panvel-bound arm of ShilPhata Junction flyover on the Old Mumbai-Pune Highway (NH-48), which will ease the traffic flow in the region, officials said here.

The Thane-bound arm of the flyover, built by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) at a cost of around Rs 45.68 crore, is likely to be thrown open after a couple of months.

The ShilPhata Flyover is 24 metres wide and 739.5 metres long with 3+3 lanes, a 300-metre long viaduct, plus approaches towards the Mumbra side (271.5 metres) and Panvel side (168 metres).

One arm of the dual carriageway, inaugurated on Tuesday, will serve Panvel-bound traffic, whereas the other arm will ensure the smooth movement of Thane-bound traffic, to be opened around April.

The project is part of MMRDA’s efforts towards traffic decongestion in and around the the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), said MMRDA Metropolitan Commissioner Sanjay Mukherjee.

The road at Kalyan Phata Junction is being heavily utilised by the movement of traffic, and the projects of mega-infrastructure development that are underway in the surrounding areas are bound to result in further elevation of vehicular movements, said officials.

Hence, the ShilPhata Flyover will greatly help decongest traffic on NH-48 by regulating traffic movements from JNPT and Thane.