Mumbai commuters will have to wait longer for the reopening of the Gopal Krishna Gokhale Bridge in Andheri, as the deadline has been pushed to May instead of the earlier commitment of April. The bridge, which serves as a crucial east-west connector, has faced repeated delays over the past two years, causing frustration among daily travelers and local residents.
A review of the construction progress was carried out on Friday by local MLA Ameet Satam, along with civic officials and contractors. It was observed that ongoing work is currently focused on the construction of the approach road and the erection of pillars. Key structural developments have already been completed, with the second girder successfully lowered on December 26. This followed the launch of the southern girder, which had been positioned in September.
Originally, the bridge had been scheduled for completion by November last year. However, setbacks had resulted in a delay of more than a month, further affecting the railway section of the bridge, which had been expected to be ready by December 31. As a result, commuters have continued to face prolonged inconvenience. During the inspection, it was reported that significant progress had been made on both sides of the bridge. On the eastern side, all four foundations and piers had been completed, with one of the four girders successfully installed. Meanwhile, on the western side, all five foundations and piers had been finished, and two of the three girders had been positioned. It was assured that construction was being carried out on a priority basis to meet the revised May deadline.
Regarding contractual obligations, it was revealed by a senior civic official that the contractor had already been warned about a ₹3 crore penalty if the work had not been completed by November 15. With further delays extending beyond the agreed timeline, the penalty is now being recalculated based on the additional days of delay, with further fines expected to be imposed. The bridge had initially been declared unsafe and was closed in November 2022. At that time, it had been planned by the BMC that two lanes would be reopened for traffic after the launch of the first girder by May 2023. However, a delay of ten months had been experienced, and only in February 2024 was the first half of the bridge made operational.
Now, with a revised completion target set for May, it is hoped that no further setbacks will be encountered, bringing much-needed relief to thousands of commuters who rely on this critical transport link daily.