The completion of the Ghatkopar railway overbridge in Mumbai has been delayed to June 2027, nearly two years beyond the original 2025 deadline. The bridge, a key link between Ghatkopar East and West, is being reconstructed to ease traffic in the eastern suburbs.

Built seventy-eight years ago, the structure was flagged as overloaded by the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay following the Gokhale Bridge collapse. The Maharashtra Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation, funded by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, is overseeing the rebuild.

The new design includes a cable-stayed span over railway tracks and a bowstring steel structure over Lal Bahadur Shastri Road, avoiding pillars beneath busy roads and intersecting two metro lines and the bullet train corridor.

Work began in 2022, but progress has been hindered by encroachments near the west-side approach, including shops and a new Slum Rehabilitation Authority building. Heavy vehicles remain banned, forcing reroutes for buses and goods transport to Sakinaka and the airport.

Right-hand lanes of the new bridge are expected to be ready in one year. The old bridge will then be dismantled. Until completion, nearby bridges at Vidyavihar and Vikhroli will offer limited relief.

Source:UrbanNews