Work on Mumbai’s first cable-stayed bridge at Mahalaxmi has achieved nearly half completion, signalling major progress in one of the city’s most complex civic engineering projects. Constructed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the 736-metre-long bridge aims to significantly ease traffic congestion and improve east–west mobility across the dense Mahalaxmi corridor. Originally due for completion in March 2024, the project now targets December 2026 after facing delays caused by encroachments and tree relocations.
A senior civic official said the bridge, which will feature a 70-metre-high pylon as its central structural element, will connect the Racecourse side along Keshavrao Khadye (KK) Marg in the west to Shirin Talkies in the east. The project, awarded in early 2020, was conceived as a long-term mobility solution to decongest one of Mumbai’s most critical traffic choke points near Mahalaxmi railway station. The BMC chose a cable-stayed design due to the 165-metre span that crosses the busy Western Railway tracks — a distance unsuited to conventional bridge engineering. According to engineers involved in the project, the structure includes a 165-metre cable-supported section, an 85-metre back span, and a 23-metre-wide deck accommodating four lanes of vehicular traffic. Once operational, the bridge will replace the existing overpass, which will be dismantled in phases to ensure uninterrupted connectivity.
Estimated at ₹389 crore, the project represents one of the BMC’s most ambitious infrastructure undertakings in recent years. Officials noted that the new bridge will also serve as a key link between central Mumbai and the upcoming Coastal Road, allowing smoother vehicular flow from Haji Ali and surrounding areas toward the western seafront. Urban transport experts have welcomed the project as a crucial step in improving last-mile connectivity and reducing vehicular idling times that contribute to air pollution. They emphasised that infrastructure projects of this nature, when designed with efficient traffic management and environmental safeguards, can support the city’s transition towards low-emission mobility.
The BMC has stated that sustainability measures, including tree transplantation, dust control systems, and noise reduction protocols, are being followed during construction. Once operational, the bridge is expected to reduce congestion near the Mahalaxmi station area — a long-standing commuter bottleneck — and support a smoother traffic flow toward key arterial routes. With its distinctive pylon-based design and urban integration, the Mahalaxmi cable-stayed bridge is set to become both a civic landmark and a vital mobility asset, reflecting Mumbai’s evolving approach to engineering innovation and sustainable urban transport.
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