A year after the closure of old Z bridge that linked Matunga station on Central Railway to Matunga Road station on Western Railway, the bridge is reportedly likely to open soon

The bridge was shut after it had been in a poor shape and is now in the final phase of reconstruction

The bridge, a crucial east-west link, was used by lakhs of officegoers, students and locals

There are several municipal schools in the area apart from colleges like Ruia, Ruparel, Khalsa, Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute and Welingkar, besides a vegetable and flower market and several temples

The earlier small open-air bridge stood for almost a century and it abutted CR’s Matunga carriage workshop from where curious onlookers would peep inside the facility

Its replacement, a completely new structure, is a bit higher and much wider than the older one and does not abut the rail workshop entirely

Railway officials claimed the new bridge has state-of-the-art features

“It is going to have brighter night lights with better lux levels and a roof, which were not in the original BMC plan but are being installed to avoid mishaps as there is high crane activity in the Matunga workshop area sometimes,” a CR official said