NEW DELHI: The Delhi government has initiated a comprehensive maintenance and rehabilitation plan for the Signature Bridge following a detailed inspection and condition assessment conducted in July. The assessment identified several areas requiring immediate preventive action, specialised investigation and planned corrective maintenance to ensure the bridge’s long-term safety, durability and serviceability.
The inspection covered all major components of the iconic cable-stayed bridge, including its superstructure, foundations, bearings, expansion joints, steel deck, 154-metre pylon, stay cables, approach structures, skywalk ramp, glass façade and Bridge Health Monitoring System (BHMS).
“Signature Bridge is one of the city’s most important landmarks and a critical part of the transport infrastructure. It is important to recognise that the bridge was handed over to the PWD only a few months ago, and our government is now addressing the maintenance requirements systematically.
Our priority is clear—every component of the bridge must remain safe, strong and properly maintained. We will not allow past gaps in maintenance to become future risks,” Delhi PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh said on Tuesday.
The inspection highlighted the need to restore the BHMS, which was found to be largely non-functional, with several sensors damaged, missing or operating in passive mode.
The proposed overhaul will cover structural temperature, strain, wind, displacement, acceleration, inclination, corrosion, traffic and force sensors, along with a new data-acquisition system and control-room setup.
“A modern bridge cannot depend only on periodic visual inspections. We need technology to continuously tell us what is happening to the structure. Restoring the BHMS will give us real-time monitoring and allow engineers to identify potential issues much before they become serious,” Singh said.
The assessment also identified erosion and deterioration of foundation protection, particularly around the riverside foundations.