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Photo by Silas Baisch on Unsplash

Top 5 bridges to see in Mumbai

The city of Mumbai is said to be India’s most fascinating city with so much to see and any visitor would want to see it all. Mumbai is home to Taj Mahal Palace, the Chhatrapati Shivaji train station and the imposing Gateway to India arch.

The streets of this great Indian city are abuzz with street vendors selling food and other wares.

Mumbai was previously known as Bombay, and it is one of the most populous cities in India. It is a popular financial and entertainment centre commonly called the city of dreams.

The widely spoken language in this city is Hindi, Bambaiiya is their local slang and has a diverse culture with people from different nationalities and religions.

Life in Mumbai moves at a very fast pace, while in the city one cannot miss the attractive colonial buildings still standing, the temples, fancy restaurants and of course the nightlife.

I’d like to draw your attention to the bridges in Mumbai, here are the top 5 bridges to see.

1. Bandra-Worli Sea Link

Bandra Worli SE Link Mumbai By Rahulransubhe – Wikimedia

First on the list is the Bandra-Worli sea link bridge that connects the western Bandra to Worli. Bandra is in the western suburbs of Mumbai while Worli is in the south. This bridge also connects travellers to Nariman Point, Mumbai’s central business district.

This bridge is cable-stayed anchored by pre-stressed concrete and steel viaducts on either side. It is an eight-lane bridge that was built in the late 1990s and was the first freeway bridge above the sea in India.

The first four lanes were opened to the public in 2009 and the other four later in 2010. The bridge cost USD 218,000, this was more than the initial budget due to the change in design.

Its 5.6 km long and more than 37,000 vehicles cross this bridge daily. This bridge has reduced the time spent in traffic, initially, it would take more than 30 minutes to sit in traffic but after the bridge was built, it is now 10 minutes.

Before the bridge was constructed, there was opposition from fishermen and environmentalists on its effect on the marine ecosystem.

2. Vashi Bridge

Vashi Bridge Mumbai By Karthikndr – Wikimedia

The Vashi Bridge is also known as Thane Creek Bridge. It is built over the Thane Creek that links the city of Mumbai to the Indian mainland at Navi Mumbai.

It also connects the Mankhurd suburbs with Vashi, a satellite city in Mumbai and acts as one of the four entryways into this great city from the south and east sides.

This bridge is one of the busiest routes in Mumbai and is made up of six lanes, the Indian government has plans underway to further extend the lanes to six more to ease traffic on the route.

The new extension to the bridge will be above Vashi creek and will be aligned with the Sion-Panvel highway. This is a three-year project that hopes to also connect travellers to and from Mumbai international airport.

3. Currey Road Bridge (Mahadev Palav Marg)

This stone bridge is one of the oldest in Mumbai. It was built in 1915 and links the Parel neighbourhood to Mumbai. Other commuters use this bridge too, those from Lalbaug, lower Parel and Joshi Marg.

In 2014, three sections of the bridge wall were pulled down to allow the construction of pillars for Line 1 of the Monorail.

The bridge is by the railway station in the outskirts of Mumbai and there are two footbridges built above it to cater for the pedestrians and passengers boarding and alighting from the trains. Each of the footbridges connects the east and the west ends of the train station.

Most of the train stations in Mumbai have bridges that allow easy connectivity to platforms on either end. This allows the passengers to choose the most convenient entry point or exit route to the station.

The law in India requires that footbridges be put up in all the stations. This bridge gets heavy with foot traffic in early morning and evenings, there are many offices and industries in this part of Mumbai. A new footbridge was built in 2016 to ease traffic for the pedestrians.

4. Hancock Bridge

This bridge is the oldest in Mumbai, it was constructed in 1879 during the colonial period when India was under the British Empire. The bridge as named after colonel H.F. Hancock who was the president of Bombay municipal corporation.

The bridge is located between the outskirts of Mumbai along with the railway stations of Sandhurst Road and Byculla.

The bridge was renovated in 1923 and was completely demolished in 2016 and an entirely new bridge was constructed. Although you may not get to see the original 19th-century bridge, you will get to see the old structure of the bridge in the new one that was opened in May 2020.

5.  Airoli Bridge

Aerial View of Airoli Bridge By Gaurav – Wikimedia

The Airoli Bridge is one of the four links that connects the city of Mumbai to its neighbours in the metropolis, similar to Vashi bridge. It is a direct link between Mumbai and Navi Mumbai.

This is a girder bridge; it uses steel girders to support its decks. The bridge is made up of steel and concrete box girders to protect the bridge from corrosion especially since it is built over water. It is almost similar to beam bridges.

This bridge caters for the huge traffic in and out of Mumbai.