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The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project has achieved a major construction milestone with the lowering of the first Tunnel Boring Machine cutterhead at Vikhroli in Mumbai. The 13.6-metre-diameter cutterhead forms part of two TBMs being assembled for excavation of a 16 km underground tunnel section, including India’s first undersea rail tunnel beneath Thane Creek. Each TBM weighs over 3,000 tonnes and is designed to construct a single tunnel carrying both high-speed rail lines.The cutterhead, weighing around 350 tonnes, has been fitted with 84 cutter discs, 124 scrapers and 16 bucket lips for excavation and muck removal operations. The machine will tunnel nearly 6 km from Vikhroli to Bandra Kurla Complex beneath dense urban areas and the Mithi river, with multiple monitoring systems being deployed to ensure structural and excavation safety during construction.
The National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) has achieved a major construction milestone for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project with the lowering of the first cutterhead of a Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) at Vikhroli in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Advertisement
According to NHSRCL, the cutterhead forms the final stage of assembly of the TBM’s primary shield system and will be deployed for excavation of a section of the underground high-speed rail corridor in Mumbai. The cutterhead has a diameter of 13.6 metres and weighs around 350 tonnes, making it one of the largest such components used in rail tunnel construction in India.
The authority stated that two TBMs, each weighing more than 3,000 tonnes, are currently under assembly for construction of a 16 km stretch of the 21 km underground Mumbai tunnel section of the bullet train corridor. The tunnel alignment includes a 7 km undersea section beneath Thane Creek, which will become India’s first undersea rail tunnel.
According to project details, the TBMs are designed to excavate a single large-diameter tunnel capable of accommodating both up and down high-speed rail lines within the same tunnel structure. The cutterhead assembly arrived in five separate shipments and was joined at the site using approximately 1,600 kg of precision welding.
The cutterhead is equipped with 84 cutter discs, 124 scrapers and 16 bucket lips for excavation and removal of muck during tunnelling operations. NHSRCL stated that the cutter discs are designed to cut through rock surfaces, while scrapers positioned on the cutterhead assist in clearing excavated material from the tunnel face. The bucket lips serve as openings through which excavated muck enters the chamber of the TBM before being transported through the pipeline system for disposal.
The TBM is expected to excavate approximately 6 km from Vikhroli towards Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), passing beneath densely populated urban areas and the Mithi river before retrieval at the under-construction Mumbai Bullet Train station at BKC.
NHSRCL stated that several monitoring systems are being deployed during tunnelling operations to ensure structural safety and controlled excavation in nearby areas. These include Surface Settlement Points (SSP), Optical Displacement Sensors, tilt meters, 3D targets, strain gauges and seismographs for monitoring vibration levels and tunnel surface conditions.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail corridor remains India’s first bullet train project and involves extensive underground, elevated and station infrastructure works across Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Source: NHSRCL Website
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