TMC agrees to modify design of tunnel under Thane rail bridge

Lala is hopeful of making necessary changes to the design within a fortnight, and submitting the new design of the tunnel to the Central Railway. The TMC is aiming to complete the work by June 2009 before the onset of the monsoon.

TMC approved the change in design in a meeting with the railway officials at Mantralaya on Tuesday which was attended by the regional elected representatives.

Under the railway line bridge, the two lane road is the cause of major traffic jams during peak hours. In March 2003, TMC had envisaged to construct two tunnels alongside existing road for light vehicles. One tunnel is complete, while the design of the second tunnel is causing the delay. The tunnel is used for one-way traffic of light vehicles from Thane to Belapur, while the traffic from the opposite direction uses the narrow path under the old railway bridge. Previously the Central Railways had approved the design to insert pre-cast slabs over and between the two concrete boxes abutting the entrances. The design of the slabs was changed thrice thereby delaying the project by a year. The Central Railway again changed their plan when TMC sought six mega-blocks of 12 hour each for inserting the pre-cast slab. The methodology was to remove the soil embankment underneath the tracks and launch the slab over and between the two concrete boxes. The Central Railway took the stand that six 12-hour mega-blocks would not be possible and instead suggested that another concrete box should be pushed underneath the tracks. Hydraulically pushing the concrete box into the railway embankment would not require mega-blocks, mere speed restriction of 20 km per hour by the trains running above would be sufficient, said Lala.

The work to clear the bottlenecks was undertaken by the TMC after several protests by people residing on both sides of the railway bridge.