Repairs to old Saraighat Bridge trigger traffic jams in Guwahati city

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The old Saraighat Bridge has been closed by the authorities for maintenance at around 11 a.m. on Saturday, triggering massive traffic congestion on both banks of the Brahmaputra. Although all traffic is being diverted over the new bridge, it could hardly handle the massive load of vehicles.

The 1.6-km-long rail-to-road bridge will remain out of service for the next two days for maintenance work towards fixing the large cracks that have appeared on the bridge. The railways department has undertaken the repair works on the bridge and issued orders to stop traffic movement on it. Long queues of vehicles were seen on both ends of the bridge from Jalukbari and Amingaon, as commuters mentioned a waiting time of over 2 hours to cross the bridge. 

This bridge was constructed between 1959 and 1962 by Hindustan Construction Company with an expenditure of Rs 10.6 crore at that time. The construction was completed in September 1962, with the first train crossing on September 23, 1962. This bridge has remained an essential piece of infrastructure connecting both banks of the river since its inception. 

Also Read: Hydraulic model study underway for new Saraighat Bridge (sentinelassam.com)

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