Bogibeel Bridge – Facts About India’s Longest Road-Rail Bridge

Bogibeel bridge is a combined road and rail bridge over the Brahmaputra river in the northeastern Indian state of Assam between Dhemaji district and Dibrugarh district. Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee inaugurated the construction work for the Bogibeel bridge in 2002, and now it will be open for traffic by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 25, 2018.

Here are 5 things you need know about Bogibeel Bridge.

1. Bogibeel Bridge – Second in Asia and First in India

Bogibeel Bridge is the second longest Rail Cum Road bridge in Asia, and first in India. Its a 4.94 kilometers (3.07 mi) long bridge. This bridge is situated 17 km downstream of Dibrugarh and Dhemaji, spans the Brahmaputra river and will connect the town of Dibrugarh in the south to Dhemaji to the river’s north. Bogibeel is the 5th longest bridge in India.

2. The Location of Bogibeel Bridge

The bridge is located just over 20 km away from the Assam- Arunachal Pradesh border and is thus expected to act as an alternative to the Kolia Bhomora Setu, Tezpur in providing connectivity to nearly five million people residing in Upper Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Bogibeel is the fourth rail-road bridge on the Brahmaputra river in Assam.

3. Will Cut Down Travel Time

The 4.9-km Bogibeel bridge will cut down the train-travel time between Tinsukia in Assam to Naharlagun town of Arunachal Pradesh by more than 10 hours. It will take five-and-a-half hours compared to the 15-20 hours it currently takes. Earlier passengers had to change trains multiple times and take a long-winded route.

4. Strategic Importance of Bogibeel Bridge

Due to its location, the bridge will be of strategic importance to India as it will significantly enhance India’s ability to transport troops and supplies to its border with Tibet in Arunachal Pradesh. Being located in an area of intense rainfall, construction has been significantly slowed down by the fact that construction largely takes place only during a period of four dry months between November and March.

5. This is How Bogibeel Was Build

This first totally welded steel bridge of Indian Railways have two railway tracks in the lower deck and three lane for vehicle movement on the upper deck. The 78,000 metric tonne steel bridge has over 900 kilometers of welding and stands overs 42 pillars. Watch the video for details.

Read: Dhola-Sadiya Bridge – 7 Facts About India’s Next Architectural Marvel

DON’T MISS