The Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) has mooted to build a 600 meter tunnel to trim travel time for passengers, luggage and belly cargo from the domestic airport (T1) to the international airport (T2).  The tunnel, with two100 metre ramps at both ends,will cut down the distance between the two airports, and more than halve travel time. 

 

The MIALbelieves, this will decongest the airports. Top construction group L&T that built T2 is currently carrying out a feasibility study for potential tunnel, which will run under the secondary runway `14/32’.

 

The MIAL says roughly 22 to 25 late night arrivals and departures occur at T1, for which passenger processing is done at T2. Hauling the aircraft from one terminal to another would create chaos on the ground, reducing the capacity of the runway. The only alternative left was to guarantee hassle-free transport of passengers and vehicles from one airport to the other.

 

Presently passengers, their luggage, as well as air cargo and other facilities, have to negotiate 4.1 kms between the two airports, and take over 25 minutes to cover this distance. The planned project will cut down the distance to 2 kms and travel time to 12 minutes.

 

“The idea is to thwart delay of traveler and luggage transport for flights,” said MIAL sources. The tunnel will relieve both passengers as well as operators at the airports.