Ahmedabad/Bharuch: Construction of a 130-metre-long steel bridge spanning an Indian Railways freight corridor in Gujarat’s Bharuch district has been completed as part of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project, with officials stating that 230 metres of a planned 330-metre steel bridge structure has now been built.
According to a statement issued on Wednesday, the bridge is being constructed near Tralsi village and crosses the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL) track between the Surat and Vadodara sections of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor.
Project authorities said the bridge is a three-span steel structure comprising a 100+130-metre continuous span and a 100-metre simply supported span. The launching work for the 130-metre continuous span was completed on May 16.
The newly launched span is approximately 18 metres high and 15.5 metres wide, weighing around 2,900 metric tonnes.
Officials said the 100-metre simply supported span, weighing around 1,500 metric tonnes, had already been erected in situ at the construction site in March.
The remaining 100-metre continuous span, weighing about 1,600 metric tonnes, will also be erected in situ. Once all three sections are completed, the total bridge structure will weigh around 6,100 metric tonnes.
According to the release, the steel bridge components were manufactured at the Carbon Factory workshop in Umargam and are designed to have an operational lifespan of 100 years.
The 130-metre span was assembled on temporary trestles at a height of nearly 14 metres above ground level before being advanced using an automated launching system supported by two semi-automatic jacks.
Each jack had a pushing capacity of up to 250 tonnes through Mac-Alloy bars.
Officials said around 1,21,373 Tor-Shear Type High Strength (TTHS) bolts were used in the construction of the span, along with metallic bearings and C5 system protective painting.
“The launching work was successfully completed under carefully coordinated traffic arrangements on the freight track. These arrangements ensured phased execution of the work while maintaining the safety and precision of the launching process and ensuring minimal disruption to freight train movement,” officials said.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train corridor includes 28 planned steel bridges overall. Officials said 14 of the 17 steel bridges planned in Gujarat have now been completed.
(IANS)
