Changing City: Come 2026, a new wider and longer Sion bridge that will ease vehicular movement in central Mumbai
A structural audit in 2019 indicated that the old bridge in the area was in a precarious condition. Following this, the Mumbai civic body decided to replace it with a new structure.
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Sion is a densely populated area in central Mumbai that houses the congested Dharavi slums. (Express photo by Ganesh Shirsekar)The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is set to construct a new east-west railway overbridge at Sion to improve connectivity between the Eastern Express Highway (EEH) and Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Marg in the island city. Pegged to cost Rs 60 crore, the project is a joint venture between the BMC and Central Railway.
What is the plan?
Sion is a densely populated area in central Mumbai that houses the congested Dharavi slums. Earlier, a Railway Over Bridge (ROB) built in 1912 provided east-west connectivity in the area. However, a structural audit carried out in 2019 indicated that the bridge is in a precarious condition and must be pulled down. Following this, the BMC floated a proposal to replace it with a new structure.
Features
At a length of 61 metres, the new four-lane bridge will be bigger than the previous two-lane structure which spanned 40 metres. The BMC said this is meant to accommodate the increased vehicular density. The bridge will also have a dedicated footpath so pedestrians can directly access Sion railway station.
Current status
In August last year, the bridge was shut down to carry out demolition work. However, this required the removal of multiple structures at the site, including toilet blocks and an electricity room of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST). However, the demolition began in April this year once the structures were relocated. Once the old structure was completely demolished, construction of the new bridge began.
Timeline
Currently, the construction work is underway in full swing, and the BMC has set a deadline of June 2026.
Administration speaks
Abhijit Bangar, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects), said that even though the progress of work was initially slow, machinery remained deployed at the spot. “The pace picked up after the obstacles were removed and the work is currently going on at full speed. The remaining work will not require much time since we aim to escalate the pace of work further post-monsoon,” he said.
“We should be able to open the new bridge for vehicular movement latest by June 2026. We had initially set a May 2026 deadline and are keeping one month as a buffer in case of any unforeseen circumstances,” Bangar added.
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