New line to enable a train every 3 minutes on WR

A train every three minutes on Mumbais Western line It sounds like a dream but officials are on course to fulfil this fantasy thanks to a new line laid under the flyover going from Bandra East to Mahim the Mumbai Mirror reported today The project which would have disrupted traffic at the junction for two years has been completed without any loss to vehicular movement u2013 and without the cars themselves having a clue about what was happening under their nosesu2026The project The Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation MRVC wanted to build an additional railway line from Mumbai Central to Borivli which would separate the mailexpress traffic from suburban services Also with new MRVC rakes being introduced it was necessary to create more space for the trains to be stabled when not in service However the project faced two main obstacles A bridge would have to be built over the Mithi River for the line to run parallel to the tracks from Mahim onwards But before that the mammoth task would be to create space under the BandraMahim flyover To create the space it was necessary to have a supporting beam on the west side which demanded closure of traffic But it was impossible to shut the flyover even for a day forget two years said Prakashrao Wazalwar MRVC spokesperson How it was done MRVC engineers started weighing the options and in coordination with J Kumar Constructions which is executing the project zeroed in on the boxpush technology Seven concrete boxes 10x10 sq m each were pushed under the bridge It was a tedious process as we had to loosen the soil and then push the boxes one behind the other said S S Kedia deputy chief project manager Civil MRVC These boxes acted as support pillars allowing us to start digging the soil under the bridgeThe soil was removed in parts for which two of the flyovers eight lanes would be closed at a time Once this was done we placed 25metrelong girders on the bridge he said explaining that while some speed restrictions had to be introduced traffic was by and large unaffected and engineers were able to complete the task in eight months What has changedThere is now room for three new tracks of which one will be used as a slow down line for WR in the future and two will act as stabling lines Work for the bridge over the Mithi River is underway The bridge is being constructed without much obstruction to the rivers flow We expect to see the services running on the additional track by the end of this year said MRVC Managing Director P C Sehgal