Tunnel built in Mumbai will speed up the work of Bullet Train, preparations are underway to run it from the year 2026
Bullet Train: The excavation work for this new tunnel started on 6 December 2023 and the entire length of 394 meters was excavated in six months. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his then-Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe launched the project in Ahmedabad on 14 September 2017. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Corridor has been making steady progress since work began in November 2021.
To accelerate the ongoing work under the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project, an additional intermediate tunnel of 394 meters long has been built at Ghansoli, Mumbai. This new intermediate tunnel will help expedite the work of the 21 km-long main tunnel between BKC and Shilphata adjacent to Thane Bay.
The 3.3 km long, 26 m deep new terminal will allow simultaneous access by excavating 1.6 m (approximately) of tunnels on either side. The bullet train project's special purpose company, National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited, released a statement stating that of the main tunnel's 21 km length, 16 km have already been excavated using tunnel boring machines, and the final 5 km will be done so. The innovative Austrian tunneling technique will be explored for kilometers.
Beginning on December 6, 2023, excavation for the new tunnel will take six months to complete the 394-meter length. Using 27,515 kg of explosives, 214 controlled explosions were performed for this project under the guidance of experts. With its length and width, the new tunnel will allow vehicles to reach the main tunnel directly both during construction and operation. In the event of an emergency, it will also be useful for the evacuation process.
The fast-moving 21-kilometer tunnel project is being built from Mumbai Bullet Train Station to Shilphata, Maharashtra. This tunnel will be submerged in Thane Creek for about seven kilometers. This is the first tunnel of its kind to be built anywhere in the country. This 21-kilometer-long tunnel will be a single-tube tunnel with two tracks at the top and bottom. Presently, 16 km of tunnel is being constructed at BKC, Vikhroli, and Savli using tunnel boring machines.
The bullet train will be able to run at a speed of 320 kilometers per hour inside the tunnel. In March this year, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that the much-awaited Bullet Train project would be ready by 2026, with the train initially running between Surat and Bilimora. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Corridor has been making steady progress since work began in November 2021. The project initially faced delays due to challenges in land acquisition.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his then-Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe launched the project in Ahmedabad on September 14, 2017. National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) was incorporated on 12 February 2016 under the Companies Act, 2013 for the purpose of financing, construction, maintenance, and management of high-speed rail corridors in India.
