Mithi River Bridge Design Change, May Delay Metro 2B Again

Due to “engineering and technical challenges” with the previous design, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has chosen to alter the bridge across the Mithi River, which is a component of the Metro 2B corridor. Even though 75% of the 23.64-kilometer corridor that connects Andheri West and Mandale in Mankhurd via the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) is finished, the essential bridge’s design revision could push the completion date over December 2025 once more.

A cable-stayed arch bridge over the Mithi River was planned by MMRDA when construction on the Metro 2B corridor started in 2017. The cable-stayed bridge’s construction had started, but it had to be halted due to long-standing technical and engineering issues, according to an MMRDA source. Work on the bridge was halted in the middle due to “technical challenges,” according to a representative of Spannovation Consulting India, the agency hired to redesign it.

The spokesperson explained why the cable-stayed arch bridge had to be abandoned in favour of a more straightforward, segmental balanced cantilever design: “The foundation and parts of the substructure were constructed under the original design, but progress on the superstructure was delayed due to unresolved technical challenges.”

The Spannovation spokeswoman and MMRDA authorities did not specify the technical and engineering difficulties that necessitated redesigning the vital bridge. Additionally, it is unknown if the substructure and foundation can be used for the new design.

The Metro 2B corridor, which connects Andheri West with Mandale, has had numerous issues in the past, delaying its estimated completion date by more than four years, although the Metro 2A corridor between Dahisar East and Andheri West (DN Nagar) was operationalised earlier last year.

The 5.87-kilometer section of the metro line between MTNL junction (BKC) and Chembur was to be built by Simplex Infrastructure in 2017. However, the contract was terminated because just 5% of the work was finished in the allotted 30 months. After a re-bid, NCC was given a new contract for the section in 2022.

The metro 2B corridor’s original completion date was 2021; however, as of right now, the 5-km section between Mandale and Diamond Garden in Chembur is expected to be finished by June 2025, with the remaining portion scheduled for completion in December 2025. According to MMRDA sources, the redesign of the bridge over Mithi might cause the deadline to be further delayed.

Source: Hindustan Times 

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