Will Mumbai’s private buses be pushed to the city’s edges? Inside BMC’s new transit hub plan | Mumbai News
If you are travelling into or out of Mumbai by a private intercity bus, your boarding and drop off points may soon shift to the city’s outskirts. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation is fast tracking plans to build large multi modal transport hubs at the city’s defunct octroi nakas in Dahisar and Mankhurd, potentially changing how long distance bus traffic enters Mumbai. Pratip Acharya explains what the proposal entails and what it could mean for commuters and the city.
Earlier this week, Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide said the BMC was accelerating plans to redevelop two former octroi naka sites at Dahisar and Mankhurd into multi modal transport hubs.
Before the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2017, Mumbai collected octroi tax on goods entering the city through designated checkpoints known as octroi nakas or check nakas. These entry points served as major taxation barriers for commercial vehicles entering Mumbai.
However, after GST replaced octroi, these large land parcels effectively became redundant and have remained largely unused for years.
Mumbai has five such former octroi naka sites — two in Mulund and one each in Dahisar, Mankhurd and Airoli — spread over roughly 43 acres.
To monetise these strategically located parcels and reduce traffic congestion caused by private buses inside the city, the BMC proposed converting the Dahisar and Mankhurd sites into integrated transport and commercial hubs.
Q) What exactly is being planned?
The proposed hubs are designed as large transport integration centres combining passenger transit facilities with commercial and entertainment infrastructure.
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According to civic officials, the facilities will include shopping malls, food courts, banquet halls, restaurants, hotels, auditoriums and art galleries, apart from dedicated transport infrastructure for passengers.
The transit sections are expected to have ticket booking facilities, waiting lounges, parking systems and integration with other modes of transport including metro, waterways and private vehicles.
Officials say the hubs are also intended to function as terminal points for long distance private buses entering Mumbai.
Under the proposal buses arriving from Gujarat, Rajasthan and northern India would terminate at Dahisar. buses arriving from Goa, Karnataka and Pune would terminate at Mankhurd
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This would mean many intercity buses may no longer enter deeper into Mumbai city limits for pickups and drop offs.
Q) How could this affect Mumbai commuters?
The BMC believes the project could significantly reduce congestion caused by private buses operating inside Mumbai.
Long distance buses currently enter central parts of the city, often contributing to traffic bottlenecks on highways, arterial roads and flyovers.
Officials argue that shifting bus terminals to the city’s entry points could Reduce traffic congestion, ease pressure on freeways and arterial roads, cut vehicular emissions and improve traffic movement inside Mumbai
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At the same time, commuters travelling by private buses may need to rely on metro lines, taxis or local transport systems to complete their onward journey into the city.
The hubs are also being positioned as commercial and recreational centres rather than purely transport terminals.
Q) Where does the project stand now?
The BMC had floated tenders for the project in 2024, but the process failed to move forward after the civic body reportedly received an inadequate response from bidders.
“We had floated a tender, however the project could not take off as we did not receive responses from an adequate number of bidders. Once the standing committee is formed we aim to take approval and retender it,” a civic official said.
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Officials indicated that the BMC may now float a fresh global tender to attract private participation.
The Dahisar hub is estimated to cost around Rs 992 crore, while the Mankhurd project is pegged at roughly Rs 240 crore.
The Dahisar plot spans around 18,000 square metres, while the Mankhurd site covers approximately 29,000 square metres.
According to officials, consultants have also been appointed to study traffic volumes at former octroi naka locations and prepare feasibility assessments before the final tender process begins.
