Officials from the city corporation and Southern Railways have halted the retrofitting work at Parthasarathy Bridge in Royapuram zone, Chennai, due to the discovery of structural defects. The bridge, along with Mannarsamy Koil Street Bridge and Perambur Loco Works Bridge, had been shortlisted for reconstruction due to structural cracks. The railway had proposed to reconstruct Parthasarathy Bridge and build additional tracks, with the corporation to share 50% of the rebuilding cost.
However, after seven months of retrofitting work, the railway informed the civic body of the need to demolish and rebuild the structure. Councillor P Velanganni, whose ward includes the bridge, expressed concern over the impact on traffic: “The bridge is in a high-traffic area and is used by commuters of Mint and Tondiarpet. Several buses operating on the Egmore-Thiruvottiyur route use the bridge. If reconstruction is needed, it should be done at the earliest so that traffic is not affected for long.”
The retrofitting work was stopped, and officials are considering the possibility of demolishing and rebuilding the bridge to ensure safety and ease traffic flow.