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The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) has reached a significant milestone in the construction of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train corridor, as it successfully cast its first Full Span Pre-Stressed Concrete (PSC) Box Girder for the Maharashtra section, as per an official release.
This 40-meter span, weighing approximately 970 metric tons, is the heaviest PSC Box Girder in India's construction industry to date. The 40-meter span girder is cast as a single piece without any construction joint, marking a major advancement in the country's rail infrastructure projects. The girder requires 390 cubic meters of concrete and 42 metric tons of steel. This achievement is part of the larger effort to expedite the construction of the viaduct, with both substructure and superstructure work being carried out in parallel to fast-track progress. The substructure work, including the construction of piles, pile caps, piers, and pier caps, is ongoing, while for the superstructure, 13 casting yards have been developed along the Maharashtra alignment, stretching from Shilphata to the Gujarat-Maharashtra border. Three of these yards are now operational, with facilities for casting both full-span and segmental box girders. The full-span 40-meter girders will be used in most locations, offering a much faster pace of construction compared to segmental girders, with progress up to ten times quicker. The full-span girders will be launched using heavy machinery, including Straddle Carriers, Bridge Launching Gantries, and Girder Transporters. To ensure a continuous supply, the girders will be pre-cast in advance and stacked in a systematic manner at the casting yards. These advanced facilities include jigs for making rebar cages, casting beds with hydraulically operated prefabricated molds, batching plants, and quality control laboratories, all aimed at maintaining high standards of quality and expediting the process. The Maharashtra section of the Bullet Train corridor spans 135 kilometers and includes four major river bridges (Ulhas, Vaitarna, Jagani, and Kharbao), 11 special bridges over national highways, DFCC and Indian Railway lines, and three stations in Thane, Virar, and Boisar. Additionally, seven mountain tunnels will be part of the route. The release added that this approach to girder construction and the development of casting yards has already been successfully implemented in the Gujarat section of the corridor, where significant progress has been made since April 2021. In Gujarat, 255 kilometers of viaduct have been completed, showcasing the effectiveness of this innovative technology, as per the release. (ANI)
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