Thread by @MandarSawant184

In the light of Metro 3 realignment let me tell you a story on how BJP govt led by Fadnavis planned the metro network in Mumbai well from a traffic management point of view and political point of view. Of course everything is political.

While the BJP supporters/ most Mumbaikar commuters lament Metro 3 yard change, Sena supporters and some other Mumbaikars celebrate and a lot of others talk if it, this is not the first Mumbai metro project started by erstwhile BJP govt

The Metro 3 is no doubt the crown piece of the entire Mumbai metro network being the first fully underground metro network in the country. But the first two metro lines were planned between Dahisar (northern suburbs) to Andheri (western suburbs) on either side of Western railway

Mumbai has two parallel suburban railway networks called the Western Railway (WR) and Central Railway (CR). Both are heavily crowded. The Western railway runs from Virar to Churchgate. Long distance trains for Gujarat, MP, Rajasthan,Punjab and the Rajdhani run over this line

There are two busy roads on either side of the Western railway line between Dahisar to Andheri, the new link road and the Western Express highway (WEH). The WEH accounts for 60% of vehicular traffic in Mumbai due to high density of population in these areas.

Also the new link road has huge traffic due to offices around Andheri area. Mumbai based on geographical shape moves North South.
Now the two metro lines (16 odd km in length each) run parallel to the Western Railway from Dahisar to Andheri.

Line 7 is being built along the median of the WEH and Line 2A along the new link road. Both are elevated metro lines. Both lines have 90% civic work done. Laying of tracks and building of stations is in progress. If not for Covid we could have seen work completion by 2020 end

But nonetheless these two lines 2A and 7 will be ready somewhere in 2021. Once ready they will help to reduce vehicular traffic on the WEH and the link road as well as reduce the crowding in the Western Railway atleast between Dahisar and Andheri.
This was the common sense part.

Now the political part. The Dahisar to Andheri belt has given BJP 7 MLAs in 2014 and 2019 respectively. Plus Dahisar to Bandra belt (of which areas till Andheri form a major chunk) has 47/98 odd BJP corporators.

You can realise the importance of this belt as 47 out of 83 BJP corporators in BMC come from here. I am sure that in 2022 the BJP will have 55-60 corporators from this belt (majority needed in BMC is 114/227 wards). Hence this area is the base on which BJP can win BMC

So as these lines open before the 2022 BMC election, the commuters will thank BJP and Fadnavis. If the MVA govt or BMC tries to delay them, the Sena will face voter anger in these areas

This is how the BJP has silently given the benefit of a major infra project to its voter base. Contrast with Sena led MVA govt which delayed Metro 3 which would have benefitted the voters in their strongholds in Andheri East, Kalina, Bandra East, Mahim, Dadar, Worli areas etc.

So while Sena and its supporters and the environmental nazis celebrate metro yard moving out of Aarey, the voters in Sena stronghold will blame Sena which travelling on traffucked highways and crowded trains.