Western Railway (WR) engineers are preparing for an unprecedented bridge engineering project that has never been tried before in the city. It involves lifting an entire road bridge passing over railway tracks by one foot, without interrupting rail or road traffic.
The project that will begin in a month is expected to be completed by June to coincide with the power upgrade along the rail lines.
DNA had first reported in October 2010 that there were plans to raise the bridge using jacks.
The Sandhurst Bridge at Opera House near Charni Road station will be lifted with synchronised digital jacks, girder by girder and the height raised lane by lane. “The project is of immense importance as railways need to raise the height of road over-bridges that pass above the line for faster trains and upgrading its power,” a senior official said.
“The target of the power upgrade is June 2011 and we have to finish lifting the bridge before the deadline.”
“It is a sensible idea of avoiding the lengthy process of demolishing an entire road over-bridge and building it all over again at an increased height. Such an attempt has not been made in Mumbai, even along the Central Railway. The structure of the bridge is quite strong and can sustain for many more years.”
The railways need work on the bridges for carrying out conversion of 1,500-volt direct current to 25,000-volt alternating current that will make trains faster and smoother.
WR officials are confident that the bridge can be raised using jacks at the ends. “Before we begin, we will check the quality of the bridge metal. If there is not much corrosion, then it would be easy to lift the bridge using jacks,” a senior official added. WR chief spokesperson Sharat Chandrayan confirmed that the entire bridge at would be raised with the help of jacks.
