₹18 crore proposal to repair Mumbai’s Lalbaug flyover

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to get a contractor to carry out structural repairs on Lalbaug flyover at an estimated cost of ₹18 crore. The move comes after cracks and gaps surfaced on the flyover.

The 2.45-km flyover, which runs from ITC, Parel to Jijamata Udyan, Byculla, is the second longest in the city, after the JJ flyover. MMRDA opened it to traffic in 2011. Taking note of the accidents on the flyover, MMRDA sent a show-cause notice to the contractor, Simplex Infrastructure. The flyover was then handed over to the civic body for repairs and maintenance.

The proposal will be tabled in BMC’s statutory standing committee on Wednesday. Shitalaprasad Kori, chief engineer (bridges), told HT, “We resurfaced the flyover a couple of times. Freyssinet Prestressed Concrete Company Ltd, the lowest bidder, has repaired many flyovers across the country.”

Acting on the orders of the Bombay high court, BMC had appointed consultants, including IIT-Bombay, to conduct a structural audit of the flyover before undertaking repairs. The audit cost the civic body around ₹97 lakh. According to the audit, BMC needs to replace faulty bearings and expansion joints, fix the girders, strengthen parts of the flyover and carry out other repairs. “The entire structural work will take six months, excluding the monsoon,” said Kori. Another civic official said rubber seals between two expansion joints have slipped, leading to gaps.

By January 2017, BMC shut the flyover for repairs for the third time, although HC had restricted it from undertaking repairs until the audit is completed.