Pulled down in 2019, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has started reconstructing the Bandra (E) Skywalk, which was originally build by Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), in 2008.
The BMC has invited tenders to appoint a contractor to demolish and rebuild the Bandra (east) Skywalk from railway station to Mumbai family court, at an estimated cost of ₹16.20 crore.
Equipped with an escalator that will be added from the family court side, the skywalk will pass over Western Express highway and will be razed to make an arm of 714 meters. This reportedly will connect to Bandra-Kurla Complex and save motorists some time at the Kalanagar signal.
“We have already laid the foundation while the testing and piling work is under way. The 500-metre skywalk will be completed next year.”Satish Thosar, Chief Engineer, BMC’s Bridge Department
The first 1.3-km elevated walkway, which was completed as a pilot project, was being used by over one lakh people daily. The MMRDA had constructed the four-metre-wide skywalk, at a height of 20 feet, at the cost of ₹13.63 crore in 2008.
However, after the collapse of the Himalaya foot overbridge near Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, the civic body ordered a structural audit by Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI) of all structures. Post audit, a total of 20 other skywalks are slated to undergo repair. After the Bandra skywalk was declared dilapidated and unsafe, it was demolished in 2019.
The last date to submit bids is September 13. The BMC has set a target of 18 months, including the monsoon months, for the demolition and reconstruction of the skywalk.
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