Western Railway is going to suspend train services in Mumbai for 20 days, starting from Tuesday, November 27. The train services will be suspended to allow the launch of a girder of the under-construction Gokhale Bridge that connects SV Road and Western Express Highway at Andheri.However, the affected train details are yet to be released by the WR according to a Times of India report.The Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Western Railway, Sumit Thakur, said that the blocks will be carried out during the night to minimise the impact on train services, the report added.
We will undertake the blocks during the night so that it has minimal impact on the train services,” Thakur said.The under-constructing Gokhale Bridge’s girder will be 90 metres, which is going to be the second-largest railway bridge in the city. Each girder of the bridge has been assembled at the worksite. According to the Times of India report, the girder will be launched at a height of 25 metres from the ground level. While launching, it will be lifted by a special crane as the girder weighs around 1,300 tonnes.Gokhale Bridge, built in 1975, is 80 metres long and 25 metres wide which is getting a new road overbridge at the estimated cost of around ₹90 crore.Meanwhile, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to open the bridge partially in February 2024. However, the initial deadline for the bridge was November 2023. In view of its condition, BMC declared the bridge unsafe and decided to reconstruct it. Previously, the pavement of the Gokhale Bridge collapsed in July 2018 due to heavy corrosion and overload.