Mumbai: Normal traffic movement on the Mumbai-bound lane of the Mumbai–Pune Expressway resumed in the early hours of Thursday after a prolonged disruption caused by a hazardous gas tanker accident in the Khandala Ghat section. Authorities restored the route nearly 33 hours after the incident, bringing relief to thousands of stranded commuters.
The accident occurred on Tuesday evening when a tanker transporting highly inflammable propylene gas overturned near the Adoshi tunnel in the ghat area. Due to the dangerous nature of the cargo and the challenging terrain, emergency teams were forced to shut down the Mumbai-bound carriageway completely as a safety precaution.
Officials from the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) confirmed that traffic was finally reopened at around 1:46 am on Thursday after a complex overnight operation. The gas inside the overturned tanker was carefully transferred to other secure vehicles before the damaged tanker was removed using heavy cranes and specialized equipment.
The closure triggered severe congestion on one of India’s busiest expressways. At the peak of the disruption, traffic queues reportedly stretched close to 20 kilometers, with vehicles stuck for hours. Many passengers, including families with children and elderly people, were forced to wait inside their vehicles without access to basic necessities such as food, drinking water, or restroom facilities.
To manage the crisis, traffic was diverted through the Pune-bound lane in a regulated manner, though this provided limited relief. Growing public anger over the delays and safety concerns led the MSRDC to temporarily suspend toll collection on the expressway during the shutdown.
The Mumbai–Pune Expressway, India’s first six-lane, access-controlled concrete expressway, plays a crucial role in connecting Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, and Raigad with Pune across a 94.5-kilometer stretch. Any major disruption on this route has a significant impact on daily commuters, commercial transport, and emergency travel.
