03 March,2020 03:06 PM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B Aklekar
There are three tunnels, one for up line, one for down line and the third for train siding or to reverse trains.
The Mumbai Metro Line 3 is close to finish tunnelling under the main water channel of the Mithi river making it the second Metro corridor in India to achieve this feat after Kolkata Metro. The stretch under the riverbed is about 1.18-km-long. Tunnelling on the 1.48-km stretch is likely to be over by March-end
The portion under the river is between Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) and Dharavi stations and is part of the 1.48-km-long tunnels being built between the two stations. There are three tunnels, one for up line, one for down line and the third for train siding or to reverse trains.
Subodh Kumar Gupta, director (projects), Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited said the two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) had completed 87% and 65%, and were expected to finish work by the end of March. He said they have completed tunnelling in the active water region of the river. The tunnels are around 8-12 metres below the surface of the water.
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Gupta said the entire stretch fills up during high tide, which has marshy soil and mangroves. He said the two tunnels of up and down lines are being built by earth pressure balance TBMs and a special type of gasket is being used to ensure that the tunnels are watertight.
Gupta said tunnelling under the river was a challenging task as the soil underneath the riverbed was soft and porous. The entire underground corridor from Colaba to SEEPZ will be made operational in two phases, with BKC serving as the intermediary station.
BKC Metro station will be a very important junction station on Metro Line 3 and they will offer higher frequency of trains between BKC and Cuffe Parade of around four minutes. It is the longest station on Metro Line 3 and will have an interchange with the elevated Metro Line 2B, BKC station will also have connectivity to the station of the proposed bullet train under MMRDA Grounds.
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