Central Railway replace busy level crossing in record time of 14 months

On August 10, the Central Railway (CR) achieved a successful milestone by inaugurating a functional Road Over Bridge (ROB), effectively supplanting a level crossing gate that formerly connected Kalyan and Vitthalwadi.The Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) executed this project within a remarkable span of 14 months as part of the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP-3A).A senior official from CR stated, The closure of this level crossing gate and the inauguration of the ROB flyover will significantly reduce delays for both rail and road traffic. Each train is estimated to save approximately one minute of travel time.The daily passage of approximately 324 trains, including 224 local trains, through this section led to the anticipation that the cessation of the level crossing gate would result in a collective time saving of one minute per local train, which had been subject to delays caused by the gate's operations.With an impressive annual Total Unit Vehicles (TUV) count of 6,73,004, indicating the heavy traffic load encompassing both road and rail, this level crossing gate had earned its reputation as one of the busiest in the region.The construction of the ROB, which commenced on June 10, 2022, reached completion within a swift 14 months. The total cost for the ROB was estimated at Rs 170 million. Noteworthy details include a bridge span stretching 36 meters, flanked by approach lengths of 105 meters on the east side and 75 meters on the west side. The bridge offers a carriage width of 9.5 meters, and a pedestrian footpath, 1.5 meters in width, has been thoughtfully integrated for the convenience of pedestrians.