A new railway bridge is being constructed over the Rupnarayan river in the Howrah-Kharagpur section.
The bridge will replace the old Kolaghat bridge No. 57, which has the middle and down main lines between Deulti and Kolaghat stations.
The bridge is 125 years old, said an official of the South Eastern Railway.
The bridge that has the up line is comparatively newer and is going strong, he
said.
“The old Kolaghat bridge was opened in 1900 and has served as a vital link of the SER, providing connectivity with Howrah and Calcutta to the rest of the country. This 804m long steel girder bridge has served as a major railway asset for the past 125 years. However, it has completed its codal life and needs replacement,” the official said.
The new bridge, whose construction has just started, will come up at a cost of ₹481.11 crore, said the official.
The viaduct will be a combination of composite and open-web girder bridges. The new bridge is expected to be commissioned by the end of 2027.
The construction of the new bridge and the completion of the old bridge’s shelf life are having an impact on train operations in the Howrah-Kharagpur section of the SER.
Train delays
At present, running of freight trains and most of the mail/express and passenger trains is prohibited on the down main line over the old bridge.
This results in running of all down trains, including the entire fleet of goods trains, mail/express trains, other passenger trains and suburban locals through the middle line, resulting in traffic congestion on that line.
The down line is for trains headed to Howrah, and the up line is for trains headed to Kharagpur.
Only a few passenger trains are allowed to run over the down main line, that too with a speed restriction of 30kmph.
The use of two lines across the bridge in this three-line section is creating a bottleneck that is leading to congestion during peak hours in the busy Howrah-Kharagpur section.
The Howrah-Kharagpur section handles more than 120 pairs of suburban and express trains every day.
“The Howrah-Kharagpur section is already saturated. The middle line is reversible and can be used for both up and down. During the morning rush, trains to Howrah should ideally use the middle line. Similarly, in the evening, trains from Howrah should use it. But now, we are constrained as the middle line has become almost exclusive for down trains,” said a senior official of the SER.