Mumbai officials draft SOP to fix recurring flaws in bridge infrastructure design
After drawing widespread criticism for recent structural and accessibility flaws in its newly opened bridges, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has announced plans to introduce a city-specific Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for bridge design. This move comes in the wake of complaints over the lack of pedestrian space, poor road alignments, and faulty traffic planning in major east-west connectors. Civic officials have formed a dedicated team within the bridge department to study past design lapses and formulate detailed construction norms, in a bid to create safer, more inclusive, and universally accessible urban infrastructure.
Officials confirmed that the proposed SOP will go beyond current Indian Road Congress (IRC) standards by addressing key structural and human-centric design flaws in recent projects. The Gokhale Bridge in Andheri, despite being a crucial link, faced public ire for its misaligned landing due to excessive elevation and for its dangerously narrow footpaths. Meanwhile, the Vikhroli bridge, intended to ease cross-city movement, has instead become a bottleneck, plagued by absence of a central divider and poorly integrated speed-breakers. The new SOP is expected to address these issues by setting fixed parameters for width, gradient, landing alignment, and universal design features like ramps and tactile pavements. The civic body aims to streamline the planning and execution process of bridge infrastructure through accountability and forward-looking design practices. Presently, structural elements like span length, load capacity, and construction methodology are handled by external consultants, while civic engineers determine alignments and locations.
This fragmented responsibility has often led to delays, cost overruns, and user inconvenience. Officials revealed that consultants responsible for flawed executions have already faced penalties, signalling a shift toward stricter oversight and performance-based contracts in future bridge projects. Beyond safety, the SOP will incorporate design features aligned with inclusive and sustainable urban mobility. Officials stated that guidelines will include pedestrian pathways accommodating differently-abled citizens, with adequate width, barrier-free stairs, and gentle ramps. The new framework will also require coordination between multiple agencies to ensure smooth integration with existing flyovers and city roads. Key focus will be on reducing criss-cross traffic at bridge arms and maintaining steady vehicular flow without compromising pedestrian access. Experts from institutes such as IIT will review and vet the designs to ensure engineering soundness and real-world usability.
The proposed SOP signals a broader shift in how Indian cities like Mumbai are adapting infrastructure to modern standards of safety, efficiency, and social inclusion. With increasing public demand for better design and rising urban mobility needs, bridge projects can no longer be planned in silos. While BMC’s initiative marks a step in the right direction, the impact will depend on how rigorously the SOP is implemented and monitored across departments. If executed well, this shift could set a national precedent for resilient and people-friendly bridge planning in dense urban regions.
