Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. This increase was short lived, and four months later in November 2019, the Highway Police slashed down the speed limit to 100 km/h (62 mph) for cars and 80 km/h (50 mph) for trucks on flat terrain, and half of that as a speed limit for hilly terrain. In July 2019, a panel of experts agreed to further increase the speed limit to 120 km/h (75 mph). However, in 2009, a speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph) was enacted as private vehicles got more powerful and could hit higher speeds more easily. The expressway initially opened without a posted speed limit. The expressway was opened to public in April 2002. Eventually, in 2009, the then ruling coalition ( INC, NCP) named the expressway after the first Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Yashavantrao Chavan, who was a member of the Congress. The expressway was conceived in the year 1992 Maharashtra. The entire length of expressway has a single layer of barbed wire fencing to keep out stray animals. The first sections opened in 2000, and the entire route was completed, opened to traffic and made fully operational from April 2002. The expressway cost ₹16.3 billion (US$200 million) to construct. This six-lane project was completed under the stewardship of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC). The tenders were received on 24 August 1998 and orders were issued on 4 September 1998. Thereafter tenders for widening of Khandala and Lonavala- Khandala bypass works were invited. After technical and financial evaluation, work orders were given on 1 January 1998 to four contractors. Due to the wide publicity, 133 tenders were sold and 55 tenders were received on 18 December 1997. The tender notice was published in leading newspapers all over India and also on the Internet. The Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India gave environmental clearance on 13 October 1997 and forest clearance on 11 November 1997. The government of Maharashtra entrusted the work of the construction of the expressway to MSRDC in March 1997 on Build-Operate-Transfer basis with permission to collect toll for 30 years. RITES submitted its report in 1994 with the estimated cost of project at ₹11.46 billion (US$140 million). The government of Maharashtra appointed RITES in 1990 to carry out feasibility studies for the new expressway to be operated on toll basis. This will allow traffic to bypass the hill (ghat) section, reducing the distance by about 6 km and travel time by an estimated 25 minutes. To alleviate this, a 'missing link' (bypass) project is under construction. Due to the winding route taken as the road climbs up the hills, traffic congestion occurs on that part of expressway where NH 48 merges. The NH 48 merges with this expressway for a short distance near Khandala. NH 48 is another separate older national highway. The expressway is not part of NHAI highway network NH 48 and has been built, operated and maintained wholly by the Government of Maharashtra via Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation. It has largely supplemented the Mumbai-Pune section of NH 48 which had become extremely congested and accident-prone. The expressway has reduced the travel time from Kalamboli in Raigad, near Mumbai to Kiwale in Pune to about two hours. The expressway handles about 43,000 PCUs daily, and is designed to handle up to 1,00,000 PCUs. Vehicles are also prohibited from halting on the expressway. Pedestrians, two-wheelers, three-wheelers, bullock carts and tractors are not permitted, although tractor-trailers (semi-trailer rigs) are permitted. The expressway has two carriageways, each with three concrete lanes, separated by a central divider and a tarmac or concrete shoulder on either side. It has five interchanges: Kon (Shedung), Chowk, Khalapur, Kusgaon and Talegaon. It cleaves through the scenic Sahyadri mountain ranges through passes and tunnels. The expressway starts at Kalamboli in Raigad District's Navi Mumbai and ends at Kiwale in Pune. The expressway, which was fully operationalized in 2002, introduced new levels of speed and safety in automobile transportation to Indian roads. It spans a distance of 94.5 km connecting Raigad- Navi Mumbai- Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra state and the financial capital of India, with Pune, the cultural and educational capital of Maharashtra. The Mumbai–Pune Expressway (officially Yashwantrao Chavan Expressway) is India's first 6- lane wide concrete, access-controlled tolled expressway. Kalamboli, Panvel, Khalapur Khandala, Lonavala, Talegaon Dabhade Sion Panvel Expressway near Panvel NH 548 in Kalamboli NH 48 in Kalamboli NH 48 in Ravet Maintained by Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC)Īpril 2002 21 years ago ( April 2002)–present
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