Bandra-Worli sea link weighs equals to 50k African elephants

MUMBAI: The long-awaited Bandra-Worli sea link, seen as an engineering marvel, weighs equivalent to that of 50,000 African elephants and steel wire used is equivalent to the circumference of the earth.

The 5.6 kilometer-long cable stayed bridge, to be opened by Congress President Sonia Gandhi on June 30, is 63 times the height of Qutub Minars and has consumed 90,000 tonnes of cement, which would suffice to make five buildings of 10-storey each.

A treat to the eyes, the cost of illumination of the bridge would be Rs nine crore and the height of the cable-stayed tower is equal to a 43-storey building.

The bridge would provide an additional moving outlet from the island city to the Western suburbs and thereby providing much-needed relief to the congested Mahim causeway, which records around 1.25 lakh public vehicles in a day.

"The eight-lane bridge will reduce the travel time between the two points from 60-90 minutes to 6-8 minutes. This will save around Rs 100 crore a year in vehicle operating cost alone," a Mumbai State Roadways Development Corporation official said.