The much-delayed Rs 4,000 crore project to construct the over 150 km-long Mumbai-Nashik Expressway on the lines of the existing

Mumbai-Pune Expressway may now get back on track.

"The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), the infrastructure arm of the state government, is now planning to construct a 16-lane expressway with the Gammon-led special purpose vehicle that is currently four-laning the road, said a top Mantralaya official.

The project could not take off as the national and state highway authorities roped in a private firm Gammon for the four-laning of the over-90 km stretch of the highway. As the agreement with Gammon has a clause wherein no competing facility is allowed, legally the project cannot be executed untill the agreement between the highway authorities and Gammon ends.

According to sources, the agreement will end only after a minimum of 15 years. However, considering the growing traffic demands on this stretch and the prospects of industrial development, the state intends to start the project by exploring all options to meet the required legalities.

The MSRDC will have to negotiate the deal and convince state as well as national highway authorities. "It will have to join hands with Gammon and get the status of entrepreneur from the state government in order to jointly start the project,'' said a senior MSRDC official.