Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate India’s first four-level transport corridor in Nagpur on 11 December. What makes this transport corridor located at Gaddigodam crossing really strange is the fact that it is made of 18.9 meter wide steel girders which are launched over live railway tracks at a height of 28 meters from the ground level. Such a unique multi-level transportation network has never been seen before in the country.
The transport corridor will have an existing vehicular and pedestrian underpass on the first level, while railway tracks on top of it will be followed by national highways on the second level and metro lines on the third and fourth levels respectively. It is going to be a part of Asia’s longest double decker viaduct spanning 5.3 km.
The 18.9 meter wide girder has been installed for the first time in the history of Indian Railways. The 80m double-decker steel span weighs 1,6650MT, while it has been erected by Afcons in a record time of two months.
“The double-decker open web girder (OWG), made with 1,650MT of structural steel with 8,000 structural elements, was placed at the busy Gaddigodam railway crossing last winter. Considering how busy this route is, all the activities were done in very tight railway block hours.
The span is at a height of 28M from the ground. Such an important and complex task has never been attempted in India before. Afcons project manager Arun Kumar said.
Meanwhile, the remaining routes of Nagpur Metro Phase-I will also be inaugurated on December 11. Metro routes from Kasturchand Park to Automotive Square (Line-1) and Jhansi Rani Square to Prajapati Nagar (Line-2) will be opened for public.
Phase-I of Nagpur Metro comprises of an elevated corridor of 39 km. Afcons has constructed 17.1 KM, which is about 44 per cent of the total viaduct length, and about 51 per cent of the total civil works.
Apart from the longest double decker viaduct, AFCON has also constructed eight stations and two depots at Reach-2 and Reach-1. The Sitabuldi Interchange Station built by AFCON is the highest metro interchange station in India.