Mumbai’s new Sion bridge is expected to open to traffic in the second half of October, restoring a key east-west connection between Sion, Kurla and Dharavi after a two-year closure, civic officials said. The 545-metre bridge replaces a 112-year-old colonial-era structure next to Sion railway station and has been designed without pillars over the railway tracks.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said the new bridge is 29 metres wide and will provide space for the proposed fifth and sixth railway lines between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and Kurla. The final opening date has not yet been announced.
BMC Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar said the bridge would be opened for traffic soon. Other officials indicated that the likely opening window would be the second half of October, following the completion of the remaining works.
The earlier bridge was declared unsafe after a structural safety audit conducted by IIT Bombay in 2019. Authorities subsequently decided to dismantle and reconstruct it as part of works linked to the Mumbai Urban Transport Project and the proposed additional railway lines.
Since the old bridge was closed, vehicles travelling between the eastern and western sides of the railway corridor have had to use alternative routes, including the Dharavi bridge, the BKC-Chunabhatti Link Road and the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road. Civic officials said these diversions contributed to congestion in Sion, Kurla and Dharavi, with Dharavi expected to benefit significantly from the reopening.
The reconstruction has been divided between Central Railway and the BMC. Central Railway reconstructed the main bridge and the girder section over the railway tracks, while the BMC Bridges Department rebuilt and strengthened the approach roads. The entire project is being funded by the railway authorities, according to the civic body.
Central Railway completed concreting work on the first 500-tonne steel girder on August 21 and on the second girder on August 29. The crash barriers and concrete wearing coat were completed subsequently. The western approach road, connecting Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg to Sant Rohidas Marg in Dharavi, was reported to be in its final stages.
On the eastern side, Central Railway handed over a portion of land to the BMC on August 25, allowing work on the approach road to begin. Bangar inspected the project earlier this month and directed officials to complete the works on priority, setting October 15 as the deadline for completion.
The tender schedule had originally set February 2027 as the completion deadline. The civic administration is now working to open the bridge considerably earlier, subject to the completion of all works and the final decision on traffic opening by the authorities.
