A major milestone in the reconstruction of the Sion Road Over Bridge (ROB) was achieved with the successful launching of a 500-tonne steel girder as part of the CSMT–Kurla fifth and sixth railway line project.
The girder was fabricated in Ambala and transported to Mumbai, where it was assembled near the Kalyan-end approach of the bridge before being launched into position. Extensive preparatory work, including erection of temporary trestles, launching arrangements and alignment checks, was carried out before the operation. The Sion ROB is expected to be opened for traffic in August.
The launch posed significant engineering challenges due to the massive size and weight of the girder and the need to execute the work in a densely populated urban area above one of Mumbai’s busiest suburban rail corridors.
The reconstructed ROB has been designed to accommodate the expanded railway corridor. The span over the railway tracks has been increased from around 40 metres to about 54.5 metres, creating space for the proposed fifth and sixth railway lines between CSMT and Kurla and supporting future operational requirements.
With the girder now in place, the project will move to the next phase, which includes construction of the deck slab, road surfacing, restoration of utilities, installation of crash barriers and other finishing works.
