New FOB at Elphinstone Road station to open on June 30

The construction work of the new Footover-Bridge at Elphinstone Road will be completed by Saturday, June 30. The bridge connects Elphinstone Road and Parel railway station and is 70m long and 12m wide.

The tender of the bridge was floated on September 29, 2017, the day of the horrific stampede at the existing bridge of Elphinstone Road which is 32m long and 5m wide. Within 24 hours of the opening of the tender on November 7, Western Railway appointed a sole bidder - probably a first in the history of suburban railways that the contract was awarded so quickly.

The contractor was on the job from the day he was appointed the work. The estimated cost of the project was ₹6.75 crore, however, the bidder had quoted ₹8.09 crore. The new FOB runs parallel to the existing narrow-bridge. Passengers are positive about the new development and believe that it will help to decongest the railway stations and make navigating easy in peak hours.

Earlier this month, Central Railway started a new FOB at Parel railway station as a part of the ₹51 crore Parel terminus project on June 10. The new FOB at Parel station is 12m wide and will now be operational from both, eastern and western sides.