9 hours ago
India opens world's highest railway arch bridge built with 28,000 tonnes of steel
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Chenab Railway Bridge, the World 's tallest railway arch bridge at 359m above the Chenab River, 35m taller than the Eiffel Tower, connecting Kashmir to the rest of India via rail.
The 1,315m bridge, part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project, was built with over 28,000 tonnes of Steel, designed to last 120 years, and can withstand high winds (up to 266kmph) and seismic activity (up to magnitude 8).
Engineering challenges included stabilising slopes in the fractured Himalayan geology, with G Madhavi Latha from the Indian Institute of Science advising on slope stabilisation and foundation design, requiring real-time construction plan modifications based on geological data.
Construction involved building 26km of new roads to transport heavy machinery to the remote site, with the USBRL project costing Rs437.8bn (£3.7bn) and the Chenab Bridge alone costing approximately Rs14.86bn (£128m).
The Chenab Bridge, designed with contributions from Indian and international firms, including WSP Finland and Leonhardt Andrä und Partner, aims to significantly reduce travel time between Katra and Srinagar to three hours via the Vande Bharat Express.
