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Bridging east & west for a century
The Parel-Elphinstone railway bridge completes a century. In an era when mills have given way for malls and tall glass towers, this iron bridge built by the Great Indian Peninsula railway (now called Central Railway) in 1913 to replace a level crossing on the railway lines continues to serve loyally.
The bridge is a mix of stone and iron structure built by local contractors with material from Glasgow. It had an attached booking office to it on the Western Railway, one of the few railway stations to have one such, recalls a railway engineer with the Central Railway.
The Bombay Gazetteer states that the municipal body had refused to share cost of the bridge and the Great Indian Peninsula Railway went ahead and got it built at its own cost. The material had been shipped from P&W Works based at Glasgow in 1911 and by 1913 the bridge was ready. The bridge was built by Parsi railway contractors Contractor Bomanji Rustomji.
Local residents, however, say that there was an old and temporary bridge at the location before this one came up. Seventy-year-old Parshuram Walje, an old resident of the area, says that he remembers his parents telling him about an old narrow, temporary iron bridge that was once at the location.
This large bridge became a necessity when motorised vehicles had begun to grow, he said. Motorised vehicles were introduced in Bombay ten years before this bridge came up in the first decade of 20th century.
City historian Deepak Rao said these bridges over the railway were crucial to connect the east and the west over the two railway lines that vertically intersected the city.
Bridging east & west for a century - Mumbai - DNA
The Parel-Elphinstone railway bridge completes a century. In an era when mills have given way for malls and tall glass towers, this iron bridge built by the Great Indian Peninsula railway (now called Central Railway) in 1913 to replace a level crossing on the railway lines continues to serve loyally.
The bridge is a mix of stone and iron structure built by local contractors with material from Glasgow. It had an attached booking office to it on the Western Railway, one of the few railway stations to have one such, recalls a railway engineer with the Central Railway.
The Bombay Gazetteer states that the municipal body had refused to share cost of the bridge and the Great Indian Peninsula Railway went ahead and got it built at its own cost. The material had been shipped from P&W Works based at Glasgow in 1911 and by 1913 the bridge was ready. The bridge was built by Parsi railway contractors Contractor Bomanji Rustomji.
Local residents, however, say that there was an old and temporary bridge at the location before this one came up. Seventy-year-old Parshuram Walje, an old resident of the area, says that he remembers his parents telling him about an old narrow, temporary iron bridge that was once at the location.
This large bridge became a necessity when motorised vehicles had begun to grow, he said. Motorised vehicles were introduced in Bombay ten years before this bridge came up in the first decade of 20th century.
City historian Deepak Rao said these bridges over the railway were crucial to connect the east and the west over the two railway lines that vertically intersected the city.
Bridging east & west for a century - Mumbai - DNA
