PROJECT MANAGEMENT

BANDRA WORLI SEA LINK

BANDRA WORLI SEA LINK

The Bandra Worli Sea Link officially known as Rajiv Gandhi Setu, is an 8lane, cable-stayed bridge with pre-stressed concrete via duct approaches,
which will link Bandra and the western suburbs of Mumbai with Worli and
central Mumbai, and is the first phase of the proposed West Island
Freeway system and is a Rs. 1600 Cr project of Maharashtra State Road
Development

Corporation

(MSRDC)

being

executed

by

Hindustan

Construction Company, Designs and Project management is done by M/s

DAR Consultants. The bridge was inaugurated on 30 June 2009 by
Congress Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The Sea Link will enable speedy
travel between Bandra and Worli, cutting travel times from 4560minutes
to 15 minutes.

THE NEED FOR SEA LINK

Mahim Causeway was the only link connecting western suburbs to island
city of Mumbai. Thus making it highly congested during the peak hours.
Vehicular traffic admeasuring about 120,000 PCU travels on the Mahim
causeway everyday and during peak hours and it takes about forty
minutes to travel from Mahim causeway to Worli, a distance of about 8
km. Construction of the project link will provide an additional fast moving
outlet from the island city to the western suburbs and thereby provide
much needed relief to the congested Mahim Causeway.

01 - FEASIBILITY STUDY AND PROJECT PLANNING

FEASIBILITY STUDY
The major engineering problems that needed suitable solutions before
proceeding with the work were as follows:
1. Highly variable geotechnical conditions of the foundation bed as
explained above.
2. Highly uneven foundation bed even for plan area of one pile.
3. Presence of Intertidal Zone (Foundation Bed exposed in low tide and
submerged in high tide).

PROJECT PLANNING

Project plan- Building a cable-stayed bridge with pre-stressed

concrete viaduct approaches.

Resource plan- The construction was executed by Hindustan

Construction Company, with design and project management by
DAR Consultants.

Financial plan- Rs. 1600 Cr ($ 400 million approx.) was approved

by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC).

02 - NETWORKING AND PROJECT SCHEDULING

Express Highway and Swami Vivekanand road at Bandra and connects to

Worli at Worli end with overall length of 5.6 kms for the entire project. A
cloverleaf interchange at Mahim intersection and a flyover at the
Lovegrove intersection have been proposed as part of this project to
enhance the faster and safe traffic dispersal.

03 - TENDERING, BIDDING & CONTRACTING

The Rs 1,634-Cr (Rs 16.34 billion) project of the Maharashtra State Road
Development Corporation has been executed by the private engineering
and construction major, Hindustan Construction Company. MSRDC has
awarded the contract of constructing the Bandra Worli Sea-Link Package
IV to the Hindustan Construction Company and its foreign partner, the
China Harbor Engineering Corporation, which has successfully completed
similar projects. HCC has the responsibility of maintaining the bridge
during the damage liability period of five years.

04 - ORGANISATION OF PROJECT TEAM

1. Project Leader
2. The Team
3. Work Methods and Procedures
PROJECT LEADER
Hindustan Construction Company
1. HCC has been building large and complex structures for the last 80
years.
2. Known for taking giant strides in technology and innovation, it is
recognized as

spearheading force in engineering

construction, both in India and the rest of the world.

3. HCC has been entrusted with the construction of high value projects
across segments like transportation, power, marine projects, oil and
gas pipeline constructions, irrigation and water supply, utilities and
urban infrastructure.

PROJECT TEAM
Engineering team from China, Egypt, Canada, Britain, Serbia,
Switzerland, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Indonesia and
Philippines worked on the project.

WORK METHODS AND PROCEDURES

Hercules -The Crane

1.

A 5,990-metric-tonne floating crane is being used in the BandraWorli Sealink project.

2.

The crane is hired from a Singapore-based firm, Keppel and Smit, at

a price tag of approximately Rs12 Cr for two months (which includes
the time taken to transport it via sea from Singapore to Mumbai and
back).

3.

The entire process of dismantling and reassembling would have

taken eight months, but with the help of the Asian Hercules the
trusses can be air-lifted and placed on the Worli end in just four
days.

4.

It can only function during high tide. In order to function effectively,

the Asian Hercules requires a minimum water level of five meters.

05 PROJECT QUALITY AND SAFETY MANAGEMENT

Following are some of the main features incorporated into the project to
enhance the performance of the bridge:
1.

High performance concrete (grade M60 with micro silica slurry) was
utilized for the structure.

2.

40 mm thick high performance overlay was provided over the prestressed deck to function monolithic with the deck.

3.

Coal tar epoxy painting was provided below the high tide level
splash zone for the sub - structure.

4.

A "State - of - the - art" electric system for the ITS.

MSRDC has some automatic system at Bandra Worli Link that identifies vehicles
going over the speed of 50kmph with cameras that can capture pictures of
vehicles within range of 1.5 kilometers, cameras can move in 360 degree for
same. To keep watch on boats and ships moving around there are two special
cameras fitted under bridge.

SEA LINK RULES

VEHICLES ALLOWED: Four Wheelers, Cars, Buses

VEHICLES NOT ALLOWED: Two wheelers, Animals, Casual Walking

(Pedestrians) as there is no footpath to walk.

06 PROJECT MONITORING AND CONTROL SYSTEM

The intelligent bridge system will provide additional traffic information,
surveillance, monitoring and control systems. It comprises CCTVs, traffic
counting and vehicle classification system, variable message signs,
remote weather information system and emergency telephones. The
control centre located near the toll plaza is housed with the
electronic tolling controls. The transmission system comprises fiber-optic
cable housed in PVC conduits running parallel to the Bandra-Worli corridor.
In addition, facilities to assist enforcement are provided in the form of
pullout locations, which will allow drivers and enforcement officers to
safely pullout of traffic.

POWER SUPPLY DISTRIBUTION AND ROAD LIGHTING

SYSTEM
A reliable and dependable power supply has been arranged for the entire
project. It will also house diesel generator sets and auto mains failure
panels to cater to critical load, e.g., monitoring, surveillance and
communication equipment emergency services like aviation obstruction
lights. Adequate levels of lighting levels have been maintained and energy
saving luminaries has been installed. Special emphasis has been given to
incorporate lighting protection at bridge tower and control room building
to protect those building/ structures and the sophisticated monitoring and
communication equipment installed therein.

07 APPLICATIONS OF INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY

APPROACH BRIDGE
General:
Bridge is arranged into units of typically five or six continuous spans of 50m.

Length of bridge: 800m + 200m + 1600m

Span: 50m
Carriageway: 15m
Side walk: 2.2m on one side
Crash barrier: 400mm on both sides
Pile:
Load bearing piles socketed into hard rock to a minimum of 4m length.
4 nos. of bored cast in-situ pile of 1.5m dia of length varying from 5m to 36m designed for
load carrying capacity of 1000T (approx.).
M50 grade concrete & Fe415 grade fusion bonded epoxy coated.reinforcement.
Liner: 12mm thick permanent steel casing for all piles.
Total nos. of pile: 372
Pile cap:
Hexagonal shape pile cap of size 10m x 9.5m x 3.5m for fixed pier location and 10m x 8m x
3m for sliding & expansion pier location.
M60 grade concrete & Fe415 grade fusion bonded epoxy coated.reinforcement.
Tremieseal (PCC) of M30 grade concrete 1m thick below pile cap.
Cofferdam: Interlocking liner type, Circular type & Sheet pile type.
Total nos. of pile cap: 94
Pier:
Hammer head shape hollow pier of size 4m x 2.5m, height varies from 5m to 18m. Pier is
divided as Fixed type, Sliding type & Expansion type.
M60 grade concrete & Fe415 grade fusion bonded epoxy coated.reinforcement.
Total nos. of pier: 94
Segment:
Fish belly shaped precast segmental concrete box of size 18.1m x 3m x 3m with 3 voids.
Segments match cast by short line method.
M60 grade concrete & Fe415 grade fusion bonded epoxy coated.reinforcement.

Segment weight: 110T to 130T

Total nos. of segment: 1554
Erection:
Span by span construction using over head launching truss of capacity 1600T. One span
consists of 16 segments.
Epoxy glue is used to join the segments. Temporary post-tensioning is done using 6 nos.
stress bars during gluing.
2 nos. cast in-situ wet joints of 200mm width in each span is provided.
Bearings: Disc bearing (fixed & sliding type) of capacity varying from 700T to 1400T.
Post tension: 30 nos. of tendons each having 19 x 15.2mm strands and 6 nos. of tendons
each having 4 x 15.2mm strands.
Expansion Joint: Modular type expansion joint with movement range of 320mm.

SUPERSTRUCTURE
The BWSL Project has (9+2) approach bridge modules. These modules
range from 3 continuous span units to 8 continuous span units. The deck
of the carriageways consists of triple cell precast box girders supported on
piers founded on independent substructure. The Concrete Grade for the
superstructure is M60. The average weight of the span is 1800 tons,
whereas the heaviest span in the bridge (to be erected with the Launching
Gantry) weighs 2000 tons. In addition, the trusses were to be designed to
receive the segment from the already erected deck as well as from barges
parked directly under the truss.
The Technical Data for the superstructure is as follows.
Max Longitudinal Gradient = 1.72%
Max Crossfall = 6%
Max Radius in Plan = 600m
Min Radius in Plan = 246m
Typical Span Length = 50m and 30m in Link Bridge
Max Span Weight = 2000 tons
The erection gantry is 1260MT truss designed to erect spans for the above
configuration. The unique feature of the truss indeed is the maximum
span weight it can handle and that it can launch the pier and EJ segment
itself. The truss also has the capacity to align the total span in hanging
condition after the gluing is completed. The truss is fully mechanized for
self launching and aligning. An individual segment can be aligned on the
truss using a set of four hydraulic jacks mounted on each suspension
frame. In order to eliminate the casting or erection errors within a span,
two wet joints are provided on either end of the span. The wet joints are
cast after finalization of the span alignment.
For the fabrication of the truss, the entire structural steel (grade Fe 540)
was sourced from within India. The accessories and components however
were procured from India and abroad.

A full scale load test was conducted before putting the erection gantry
into actual operation.
The erection gantry comprises the following:
a. Main truss
b. Front/rear pylons
c. Front/centre/rear legs
d. Front /rear trolley
e. Cross beams
f. Stressing gondola
g. Suspension frames
h. Connection beams-Type A/B
i. Spreader beams- Type A/B
j. Pier bracket
k. Chain Support
A Typical 50m span of the approach bridges comprises 15 field segments,
a Pier segment and 200mm (nominal) in-situ wet joints. During the span
construction, all field segments are suspended from the Gantry, glued and
temporarily stressed together. Once the gluing
operation is completed, span alignment to the Piers is followed. After
alignment, the wet joints are cast including grouting of bearings top
plinth. Once the wet joints achieve the required strength, stressing of
longitudinal PT is commenced followed by load transfer of

Relocation of Launching Trusses using 1600MT capacity Barge Mounted

Crane Asian Hercules After the successful erection of the deck on Bandra
side, the trusses were required to be shifted across the Bandra cable stay
bridge by 600 meters to Worli side to take up the spans beyond the
Bandra Cable Stay. Various options like
(i) Dismantling of the trusses at present locations and reassembling them
at new locations, (ii) lowering the trusses on a suitable floating craft and
shifting and erecting them.
(iii) Shifting the total truss using a floating crane, etc was analyzed in
detail.
Taking into consideration various constraints like limited working period
available to execute the work in sea, the effect of open sea on dismantling
and re-erection, etc, the best option available was the relocation of the
trusses in one piece using a floating crane.
Asian Hercules is one of the biggest floating shear leg cranes in the world.
This crane is mounted on a barge which is over 240 feet long and more
than 130 feet wide, weighs 5,900 tons and has enough lifting capacity
(1600 MT) to lift a weight equal to 2,000 small cars. It
started its voyage from Singapore on October 9, 2006, and arrived at
Mumbais shores on October 27, 2006. After obtaining the necessary
regulatory clearances, it commenced operations from November 06, 2006,
including trial runs and realignments in its settings.
Selection of equipment was done considering various challenges, like the
draft and space available at working locations, tide limitations, and other
weather constraints.

TECHNICAL DRAWINGS OF THE PROJECT

08 BENEFITS OF THE PROJECT

1) It is estimated that the sea link will help saving Rs. 10 million annually
due to congestion in traffic and length of the previous route and shorter
new route.
2) While earlier it used to take 40 minutes for drive between Bandra and
Worli, now the distance can be covered in mere 8 minutes resulting in
large savings in time.
3) The sea link has resulted in much easier driving with reduction in
mental stress and improvement in the quality of life.
4) There would be reduction in accidents due to shorter distance and
wider roads.
5) Extensive landscaping along the approaches and promenade enhances
the surrounding environment.

09 FACINATING FACTS
1. The project has already been acclaimed by the viewers as an
engineering marvel of modern India.
2. First Cable-Stay Bridge in India in open sea.
3. The length of the bridge is 63 times the height of the Qutub Minar
in Delhi.
4. Its weight is equivalent to 50,000 African elephants.

5. The length of the steel wires used is equivalent to the

circumference of the earth.
6. The height of the cable-stayed tower is 128 m, which is equal to a
43-storey building.
7. A total of 424 cables were used for both Bandra cable stay as well
as Worli cable stay bridges.
8. The cables have been sourced from Shanghai Pujyang Cable
Company, China. The cables were subject to a series of quality and
engineering tests to meet the special requirements including fatigue
tests of two million cycles.
9. The cables are made of high tensile steel and are designed to take
the maximum load of 900 tons.
10.
92,000 tons of cement was utilized to make BWSL.
11.
Environment friendliness was top priority during the
construction fly ash, a waste product extracted from thermal
power plants, was mixed with concrete, to make the construction
durable as well as eco-friendly, thus making good use of waste
material.
12.
The construction team is like a mini United Nations: several
teams of foreign engineers and technicians have worked on
specialized tasks on the structure; these include professionals from
China, Egypt, Canada, Switzerland, Britain, Serbia, Singapore,
Thailand, Hong Kong, Indonesia and the Philippines, Australia.

10 CHALLENGES FACED
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Low working efficiency

Failure to achieve the targeted deadline.
Incessant Rains.
Unskilled Labour.
Budget Constraints.

11 DISADVANTAGES OF THE PROJECT

1. Encroachment within the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ).
2. Negative impact on environment such as degradation of
downstream water quality.
3. Negative impact on livelihood of fishermen due to reclamation of
fishing areas.
4. Negative impact on marine ecology
5. Possible coastal erosion or silting of downstream water bodies

12 PROJECT CLOSE OUT

The project was initiated more than 10 years ago in 1999 and was
supposed to be completed within 5 years but it was delayed due to public
interest litigations. The foundation stone was laid in 1999, by Shiv
Sena supremo Bal Thackeray. It was expected to cost Rs 300 Cr and to be
finished by 2004.
The Bandra Worli Sea Link was inaugurated on 30th June 2009 in the
presence of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. The Bandra-Worli Sea Link
is the new landmark of Mumbai, a testimony to Government of
Maharashtras determination to build state-of-the-art infrastructure for
Mumbai.