PM Modi launches India's longest sea bridge – Atal Setu, a engineering marvel

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched the longest sea bridge in the country Atal Bihari Vajpayee Sewri-Nhava Sheva Atal Setu. The Mumbai Trans Harbour Link has been built at a cost of Rs 17,840 crore.

The Atal Setu is a 21.8-kilometre-long bridge that connects Sewri in Mumbai and the Nhava Sheva area in Raigad district. This bridge will shorten the journey between the two locations from two hours to around 15-20 minutes.  

Built in a record five years, several technologies have been used in the making of this bridge, which are used for the first time in India, said Metropolitan Commissioner of MMRDA Sanjay Mukherjee.

The bridge is highly efficient and environmentally friendly due to the innovative technologies used in it.

Here are the 8 technologies that make Atal Setu Bridge an engineering marvel.

•  Earthquake-resistant design: The bridge incorporates base isolation bearings that act as shock absorbers, allowing the bridge to move slightly during an earthquake without collapsing. This design is said to withstand tremors up to 6.5 on the Richter scale.

• Innovative steel deck: This deck design uses a corrugated steel plate supported by a network of steel beams that provide structural integrity and long spans. The steel deck is lighter than traditional concrete decks, reducing the overall weight of the bridge and making it more resistant to wind and wave forces.

•  Longer spans: The steel deck also allows for longer spans between support piers, minimising the number of piers needed and creating a more aesthetically pleasing bridge. Not only this, the desk is easier to inspect and maintain than a concrete deck.

•  Reverse circulation rigs: These specialised rigs help in reducing sound and vibrations, hence protecting marine life around the bridge.

•  Noise reduction measures: The bridge includes noise barriers on the sides and silencers to minimise the noise impact of the bridge.

•  Eco-friendly lighting: The bridge's lighting system uses low-energy LED lights that are designed to be non-disruptive to the aquatic environment.

•  Open road tolling system: This modern system uses electronic toll collection (ETC) technology to automatically collect tolls from vehicles without the need for them to stop– essentially helping in reducing traffic congestion at toll booths.

•  Real-time traffic information: These displays provide drivers with up-to-date information about traffic conditions and accidents on the bridge and surrounding roads.