Mumbai: Central Railway plans to demolish, rebuild 110-year-old Sion bridge

Central Railway (CR) is planning to pull down and reconstruct the 110-year-old Sion rail overbridge to make way for the fifth and sixth line project. The Mumbai traffic police have given the go-ahead for the bridge's closure. It will take at least two years before the new connector is opened for motorists.

A senior railway official told mid-day, "We are planning to pull down the bridge. But before that, we need to decide on alternatives for motorists. We are having discussions with the state government authorities concerned." The bridge, a crucial connector between Dharavi and the Eastern Express Highway, links 90 Feet Road to Mahim and Bandra. The current structure over the railway tracks is around 40 metres long. Its replacement will be 11 metres longer. According to reports, the existing bridge comprises two spans and one of its pillars stands on the railway line. The new connector will have a single span and include no pillars.

The existing Sion bridge is around 40 metres long. File pic/Atul Kamble

According to a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official, the civic authorities will build an approach road while and railway authorities will build the bridge over the railway line. The estimated cost of building the replacement as well as the approach road is around Rs 50 crore.

Progress of rail project

Work has begun on several patches on a 10.1-km stretch between Kurla and Parel, according to officials. "At Kurla and Sion stations, work is at an advanced stage. What remains is land procurement from third parties and rebuilding road and rail bridges passing over existing lines to accommodate the two new lines," a top official said.

"The first major thing to be taken up soon is the replacement of Sion bridge. It will be shut for traffic. It will have to be rebuilt to accommodate the two new lines below it," he added. The fifth and sixth line project is part of the World Bank-funded Mumbai Urban Transport Project 2 was sanctioned in 2014 for Rs 891 crore.

Possible alternatives

With the crucial connector out of the way, motorists will have to take the Santacruz- Chembur Link Road via Kurla, which connects the Eastern Expressway and Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg. There is also a rail overbridge near Sion Hospital, which connects Bharat Ratna Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Road to Dharavi.