Vashi Bridge, Panvel
About Vashi Bridge
History
The first bridge to connect Mumbai to Navi Mumbai was conceived by Adi Kanga and was built in 1973. The bridge is 1837m in length and has a substandard 3 lane carriageway. Within two years of its opening to traffic, corrosion cracks were noted on the bottom side of the prestressed girders of some spans. This led to a series of extensive repairs including external prestressing. It was simultaneously decided to construct a new bridge to replace the faulty one. Construction on a new bridge began in 1987 and opened to traffic in 1992. The original Vashi Bridge or the 1st Thane Creek Bridge remains closed to traffic.
Construction
A new bridge having a 6 lane divided carriageway and length of 1837.35 m (30 m down stream) was constructed from 1987 to 1997 with several unique features in the construction and design with emphasis on durability and a formal QA/QC programme. Proof Consultants were appointed to oversee each aspect of planning, design and construction. Open foundations were taken into the bedrock with foundation concrete being laid in the dry, with the sea water being pumped out using submersible pumps. The piers in the intertidal zone were protected by epoxy coal tar paint painted on 6 mm thick m.s. plate which was considered as a lost shuttering. The superstructure was a P.S.C. box girder, one for each carriageway, constructed using balanced cantilever cast-in-situ segments. The new bridge (also the Vashi Bridge) has performed without any problems whatsoever. This bridge was constructed by U.P State Bridge Corporation Ltd. for which it was awarded the most outstanding concrete structure award. The new bridge is also known as the 2nd Thane Creek Bridge. The lane expansion work on Vashi Bridge, also known as the Thane Creek Bridge, is likely to begin later this year, with the authorities identifying a contractor for the work. Larsen and Toubro (L&T) emerged as the lowest bidder for the contract last week.