Traffic flow, pedestrian movement to be normal on Gokhale bridge by yearend

WR says work on south end, pedestrian portion will be over by Decend; bridge collapse in July killed 2 people

MUMBAI:GOKHALE Bridge in Andheri, which was closed after parts of it collapsed in July, will see fewer restrictions and allow full-fledged movement of pedestrians by the end of December this year. Western Railway (WR) said that work on the south end and the pedestrian portion of the bridge will be completed by then.

“The construction work on the south end of the bridge is on its last leg and the work will be completed by December-end,” said a senior WR official.

“As of now the vehicular movement is operating with restrictions, but after the completion of the south-facing end of the bridge, pedestrian and vehicular flow will be normalised,” he further said.

Currently, there are restrictions on vehicular traffic and restricted movement for both vehicles and pedestrians is allowed on the north end.

Once the south end is opened

up, work on the north end will be completed.

In July this year, Gokhale Bridge’s pedestrian pathway collapsed on the railway tracks of Andheri station.

Five people were injured and two succumbed to their injuries. Since then, WR has been reconstructing the bridge and the work is expected to be completed by July 2019.

Initially the Railways had stopped complete vehicular movement on the bridge, citing portions of the bridge to be unsafe. Some of the restrictions were removed in November and one-way vehicular traffic was allowed. Once WR has completed constructing the bridge, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will build an approach road to the bridge.