5th OWG for Mumbai – Ahmedabad Bullet Train Launched Near Vadodara

M G Contractors Pvt. Ltd. (MGCPL) this week completed launching their fifth open web girder (OWG) bridge of the 508.17 Mumbai – Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR Bullet Train) project.

This 60 meter long steel bridge (GAD-28) for Package P1(C) was slowly pushed into position across the Bajva – Chhayapuri line of the Western Railways in Gujarat using using multiple rollers and hydraulic jacks.

The exact launch site is located in Sursi village, just north of Vadodara city (view on Google Maps) between MAHSR’s chainage KM 402.902 and 402.962.

The 12.5m tall & 14.3 wide bridge weighs 645 MT. A temporary launching nose weighing 160 MT was connected with the main bridge to assist with launching. Launching work was completed under mega traffic and power blocks, ensuring minimal disruption to regular train services.

The steel bridge along with launching nose were assembled near the site at a height of 14.5 m from the ground on temporary trestles and was pulled with automatic mechanism of 2 number of semi-automatic jacks, each of capacity of 250 ton using mac-alloy bars.

India’s National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) had awarded M G Contractors with bridge package P-1(C)‘s Rs. 261.24 crore contract in August 2021.

P1-C’s scope involves the construction of 1 prestressed concrete (PSC) and 4 steel truss bridges (GAD 28, 1967, 31 and 32) within 87.569 km Package C6 (Vadodara – Ahmedabad) which is under construction by Larsen & Toubro.

An estimated 70,865 MT of steel will be used to fabricate 28 bridges for India’s first Bullet Train project. With this development, 2 OWG bridges have been launched for Package P1(B) and 3 bridges for Package P1(C).

Here’s a list of all 5 bridges launched so far. Click on the links to see images and details:

• GAD-1134 (70m, 673 MT) – over National Highway NH-53 near Surat for P1(B) in October 2023
• GAD-31 (99.6m, 1486 MT) – over Vadodara – Ahmedabad Railway Line near Nadiad for P1(C) in April 2024
• GAD-1967 (130m, 3098 MT) – over Delhi – Mumbai Expressway near Vadodara for P1(C) in June 2024
• GAD-68 (100m, 1464 MT) – over Bhilosa Switching Substation near Silvassa for P1(B) in August 2024 (this post!)
• GAD-28 (60m, 645 MT) – over Bajva – Chhayapuri Railway Line near Vadodara for P1(C) in October 2024 (this post!)

For more updates, check out the High Speed Rail section or my Home Page! Sign up for free instant email notifications on new posts over here. Like this post? Get early-access to updates and support the site over here.

– TMRG