Mumbai-Navi Mumbai water taxi: A water taxi service was launched in Mumbai on Thursday to promote smooth connectivity and tourism in India’s financial capital. This service will connect Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. It will start from the Domestic Cruise Terminal (DCT) and will also connect nearby locations at Nerul, Belapur, Elephanta Island and JNPT. It was inaugurated by Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday.
The Belapur Jetty Project started in January 2019 and was completed by September 2021. A total of Rs 8.37 crore was spent for this project, implemented under the Sagarmala programme. This is the first time that Mumbai and Navi Mumbai will be connected by fast and reliable transport services which will help in reducing the travel time to a great extent.
With the introduction of water taxis, the distance and time between the two cities will be cut by more than 50 percent. That is, to reach from Mumbai to Navi Mumbai by road, which used to take one and a half to two hours and 50 to 60 minutes by rail, it will now be completed in 30 to 50 minutes by sea.
The safety of the passengers of the water taxi has also been taken care of. Earlier this water taxi service was to start in March 2021, but due to the second wave of infection, it could not be started at that time.
From today i.e. February 18, water taxi has started on Mumbai’s Domestic Cruise Terminal-JNPT-Elephanta and Belapur-JNPT-Elephanta routes. Monthly passes have also been arranged for daily commuters through water taxis.
Complete detail from fare to route
The fare for water taxi speed boat service will be around Rs 800 to Rs 1,200 for a one-way journey and will take around 30-40 minutes. Whereas for one-way catamaran service, passengers
290 will have to be paid. The monthly pass for the speedboat will be available for Rs 12,100.
The fare for a shared water taxi from Domestic Cruise Terminal (DCT) to Belapur will be Rs 1,210.
The fare from DCT to Dharamtar will be Rs 2,000 and the duration will be 55 minutes.
The fare from DCT to JNPT will be Rs 200 and the journey duration will be 20 minutes.
The fare from DCT to Karanja will be Rs 1,200 and the duration will be 45 minutes.
The fare from DCT to Kanoji Angre will be Rs 1,500 and the duration will be 55 minutes.
The fare from Central Business District (CBD), Belapur to Nerul will be Rs 1,100 and duration will be 30 minutes.
The fare from JNPT to Belapur will be Rs 800 and the duration will be 25 minutes.
A total of eight boats have been allotted so far for the passengers.
A speed boat can accommodate 10 to 30 passengers and a catamaran can hold 65 people.
Belapur Jetty has parking space for 75 cars and 85 two wheelers.
Taxis will run from 8 am to 8 pm and will run at intervals of a few hours.
Passengers will have to reach 30 minutes before departure time and boarding gates will close 10 minutes before departure.
They have to carry a valid photo ID proof with them.
The ticket will be valid only on the date of journey for the departure slot booked.
Passengers will have to wear life jackets.
Passengers will be allowed to carry only 10 kg of luggage. A fee of Rs 1000 per kg will be levied on the goods that are overweight.