Aiming to speed up train movement over the Yamuna and also decongest the Ghaziabad-New Delhi rail corridor — one of the busiest in the country — Indian Railways has proposed an additional rail bridge over the river in the Capital.
While the old Yamuna rail bridge, also known as Loha Pul, will give way to a new double-line rail bridge by March next year, another bridge is set to come up near the existing Nizamuddin rail bridge to ensure faster and seamless movement of about 150 outbound and inbound passenger and freight services.
Punctuality issue
Train movement between Ghaziabad and New Delhi station currently takes over an hour or more due to congestion on the route.
There have been demands to ensure an additional path for Delhi-bound trains to improve punctuality.
The proposed 600-metre bridge near the existing Nizamuddin rail bridge, to be constructed at an estimated cost of ₹425 crore, will provide an additional path for Delhi-bound services and ensure that trains negotiate the bridge at above 100 km per hour.
“The hydraulic study for the proposed new rail bridge is under way. We expect construction to start by the end of the year,” a senior Railway Ministry official told IANS .
Kikar trees
Construction of the new bridge along the Nizamuddin bridge is expected to claim about 2,000 kikar trees on the dry riverbed. As far as replacement of the old Yamuna bridge is concerned, the 800-metre-long new double-line rail bridge is expected to be operational by March next year as the work is on full steam. It is being built at an estimated cost of ₹200 crore.
Though the over-a-century-old Yamuna bridge will be discarded and replaced by a new one along the existing site, the road bridge, which is part of the old bridge, will continue to remain in use and its maintenance will be handed over to the Delhi government by the Northern Railway.
Water level
Popularly known as Loha Pul, the old bridge gets affected during floods as train movement slows down. If the water level in the Yamuna touches the danger mark, traffic is not allowed on the bridge.
The new upcoming rail bridge will be an all-weather bridge, where “train movement will not be affected even in a flood situation”, said the official.
Unlike the old Yamuna bridge, where trains are allowed only at 20 kmph-30 kmph, there will be no speed restriction on the new one
