Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train: Station at BKC, 21-km underground tunnel see steady progress of work
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train project is progressing steadily in Maharashtra, with major developments taking place at two key sites — the Mumbai station at the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and the 21-km underground tunnel running up to Shilphata from BKC.
As per National High-Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL) officials, groundwork at the Mumbai station is now 75% complete, with 14 lakh cubic metres of soil dug out so far out of a total 18.7 lakh cubic metres. 'The casting for base slab for the station has already commenced with nearly 25,000 cubic metres of concrete already cast,' an official said.
The overall concrete needed for this deep underground slab is likely to be approximately 2 lakh cubic metres. Secant piling — a method used to build strong retaining walls for underground constructions — has been completed, amounting to 3,384 piles at the station site.
Besides, tunnelling between BKC and Shilphata is also progressing well, with 3.3 km of the tunnel heading completed. The 21-km tunnel will be a vital component of the high-speed rail corridor in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). Of the 21 km, 16 km will be constructed through Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) and the last 5 km through the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM).
At present, construction is going on from the Shilphata side and from two other tunnel faces at the Additionally Driven Intermediate Tunnel (ADIT) portal. 'The ADIT provides access to the tunnel for vehicles during construction and subsequently for operations and emergency evacuation,' the official added. Two vertical shafts at Vikhroli and Sawali have also reached their required depths of 56 metres and 39 metres, respectively.
In Palghar district, work on seven mountain tunnels by NATM is also underway.
In Maharashtra, work has moved at important points, while work in Gujarat is going on at an impressive pace. NHSRCL has completed 293 km viaducts, 375 km piers and foundations for 394 km. Girder casting has also been finished for 320 km. It has also finished building 14 river bridges in different districts of Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Moreover, seven steel bridges and five pre-stressed concrete (PSC) bridges have been constructed.
Track infrastructure is also moving apace in Gujarat where NHSRCL has commissioned over 3 lakh noise barriers for 150 km and completed more than 143 km of track bed.
As far as stations are concerned, structural construction has been done for six of the eight bullet train stations in Gujarat, and construction on all three elevated stations is in progress.
The Mumbai- Ahmedabad High-Speed rail corridor will be 508 km long — 156 km in Maharashtra and 352 km in Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The Bullet train project, expected to be completed by the end of 2027, will reduce travel time from Mumbai to Ahmedabad to approximately two hours. NHSRCL is the executing agency for the project, which is being constructed with financial and technical assistance from Japan.
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