Booster shot for three sick south Mumbai bridges

Heavy vehicles are now banned on Chinchpokli bridge. Pic/Ashish Raje

AMID an outpour of scorn for the BMC over the closure of the Gokhale bridge in Andheri, authorities have pulled three overpasses out of the city's list of "dangerous bridges". Officials said the lifespan of the Chinchpokli bridge, S bridge at Byculla and Olivant bridge at Mazgaon has increased as the structures have been strengthened and may not need to be demolished and rebuilt immediately.

This also means Ganpati devotees might get some relaxation on the Chinchpokli bridge, which is used by most big mandals, during idol immersion processions, unlike in the past over safety concerns.

"Though there will be no restriction on vehicular weight, there may be a restriction on the number of people standing on the bridge. Rolling and static weights are two different things. A heavy lorry can ply on the bridge but thousands of people standing and dancing on even the ‘safe' bridge may cause damage, so the decision of allowing people on the bridge should be taken cautiously," said a senior official from the BMC.

These bridges needed urgent attention as per an IIT-Bombay report in 2019 and were considered for reconstruction by the Maharashtra Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (MRIDCL). The Central Railway has informed the civic body that the bridges have been fortified. A recent audit by the BMC also showed that the overpasses are in sound health.

The east-west S bridge at Byculla in March 2015. Pic/Rane Ashish

The Chinchpokli bridge along with at least 12 other bridges on rail lines was on the list of concerns after the audit was carried out by IIT Bombay. The audit was undertaken after the footpath portion of the Gokhale bridge collapsed in 2018. After the IIT audit, the Delisle bridge near Lower Parel station was closed immediately and is now in the final stage of reconstruction. Since the audit, there were many restrictions, including speed and weight, on the movement of traffic on the bridges.

"The bridges were supposed to be taken for reconstruction one after another in a planned process. But parallelly, Central Railway has begun strengthening work on the bridges during the past three years, and now three bridges - Arthur Road at Chinchpokli, S Bridge at Byculla, and Olivant bridge at Mazgaon - are in a safer condition than earlier and may not require immediate demolition and rebuilding. We have informed the BMC about this," a top CR official said.

Also Read: Gokhale road bridge fiasco: Railways calls out BMC

Confirming the development, a BMC official said, "We received a letter from the railways stating these three bridges are in a safe condition and need not require urgent demolition." An official from BMC's bridges department said, "IIT had recommended several measures, including offloading which we have carried out and we can say the approaches of the bridges are now in a safer condition."

"The bridges needed urgent attention as most of the bridges were in dilapidated condition. After the report, we reconstructed FOBs [pedestrian portions] of the Tilak bridge at Dadar and Andheri's Gokhale bridge. Even the Gokhale bridge has been strengthened and does not require urgent demolition on the railway portion. Only its approaches are in a dangerous condition," said the rail official.

MRIDC officials said they are working on east-west bridges at Reay Road, Byculla, Dadar and Turbhe. While the Reay Road bridge has been demolished, Byculla and Dadar bridges will be pulled down once the new bridges are constructed. On its part, the BMC has started work on the Hancock bridge, Carnac bridge, Lower Parel bridge, and now the Gokhale bridge.

Cut the flab: IIT report
The IIT had surveyed 445 bridges and found excess weight on them and recommended offloading also. Offloading is a process to scrape off the excess layers of asphalt and concrete and paver blocks on footpaths on bridges over the years during repairs. The BMC offloaded 16 bridges in SoBo including the Chinchpokli bridge.

Bridges taken up by MahaRail
1. Ollivant bridge, Mazgaon - Safe
2. Arthur Road bridge, Chinchpokli - Safe
3. S bridge, Byculla - Safe
4. Lower Parel (Delisle) bridge - Rebuilt by BMC
5. Reay Road bridge - Demolished
6. Ghatkopar bridge - Dilapidated/condition awaited/not known
7. Byculla bridge - To be razed after new bridge is ready
8. Bellasis bridge, Mumbai Central - Not known
9. Tilak bridge, Dadar - To be razed after new bridge is ready
10. Currey Road bridge - not known
11. Matunga bridge near labour camp - not known
The BMC has also started work on Hancock, Carnac and now Gokhale bridges

2019
Year when an IIT report said these bridges needed urgent attention