He Newly built Belasis Bridge in Mumbai could be the first infrastructure project inaugurated by the new mayor as the civic body plans to open it for traffic by the end of next week, by which time the city is expected to have a mayor after a four-year gap.
The 130-year-old bridge, which is a key east-west connector in the south BombayIt was demolished and rebuilt in 15 months. It will also be the first key infrastructure project to open to the public this year.
Usually, most of the big-ticket projects built by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) are inaugurated by the mayor, the first citizen of Mumbai.
Civic officials stated that the construction of Belasis Bridge was completed on January 6 and since then, ancillary works such as painting of road markings and dividers, and installation of signals and lights have been carried out. Currently, the BMC has started its application to obtain no-objection certificates (NOC) from the railways and the Mumbai traffic department.
“Since the bridge will go over the railway tracks, we will need NOCs from both the agencies. The NOCs will take a week to arrive, after which the bridge will be opened for public transport,” an official told The indian express.
In many cases, the traffic department provides information regarding the restructuring of some aspect of a bridge before submitting its NOC. For example, when the BMC inaugurated the Carnac bridge last year, the traffic department pointed out that a certain portion of the road would need to be resurfaced. Later, the BMC started the work.
Officials said if such suggestions are made, the inaugural process could be delayed by a week.
New mayor at the end of January
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With the BMC election results announced last week, the state government will conduct a lottery to decide the mayoral reservation category of 29 municipal corporations in the state, including Mumbai. Subsequently, the mayor will be elected on January 31.
“Although the timing of the mayor’s inauguration coincides with the completion of all procedural work for the opening of the bridge, it is not a deliberate move or attempt. If the NOC arrives at the end of next week, the bridge could be opened by the mayor. However, the election is a judicial process, and in case there is any delay, no attempt will be made to stop the opening of the bridge as it will cause inconvenience to the people,” the official added.
A rebuilt century-old bridge
Built at a cost of Rs 110 crore, Belasis Bridge connects traffic movement between Nagpada and Tardeo and is a railway bridge (ROB) that passes over railway tracks. However, a 2018 structural audit report found that the bridge had exceeded its intended useful life. After this, the BMC decided to build a new bridge by demolishing the old structure.
The old structure was demolished in June 2024, after which construction of the new bridge began. Since the bridge will span over railway tracks, BMC opted to construct a cable-stayed bridge to minimize pile work.
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The new bridge is also cable-stayed and constructed of steel, while the foundation is made of concrete. The main carriageway of the bridge is 380 meters wide and has four vehicle lanes to improve traffic flow.
