If you live in Mumbai, you don’t measure distance in kilometers—you measure it in time.
Versova to Bandra? It could be 30 minutes. Or 90. It depends on the time of day. The traffic. The rain.
But that unpredictability is about to change.
The new bridge rising off the coast of our city is more than just new structure. It’s a bold step toward a more connected, resilient, and livable Mumbai. This project reflects the power of purposeful infrastructure not just in moving people, but in improving their everyday lives.
The Versova-Bandra Sea Link (VBSL) is a landmark initiative that’s redefining how infrastructure is delivered, and how infrastructure delivers for people.
Stretching over 17.17 kilometers, VBSL will become India’s second-longest bridge and a vital part of Mumbai’s new Western Coastal Road. It will connect Versova to Bandra and, once complete, should cut commute times by up to 45 minutes for thousands of Mumbaikars.
That’s more than just a traffic solution. That’s time reclaimed to rest, spend with family, be productive, or simply breathe. VBSL is infrastructure serving people the very vision Bentley strives to support.
Key takeaways:
- Versova-Bandra Sea Link will cut Mumbai commute times by up to 45 minutes.
- The project uses Bentley’s digital solutions, including ProjectWise, SYNCHRO, and AssetWise.
- 4D and 5D construction planning improve efficiency, collaboration, and sustainability.
- Completion expected in 2028, transforming Mumbai’s coastal connectivity.
Engineering the impossible
VBSL is a complex feat of civil engineering. The bridge is an eight-lane, sea-spanning structure with interchanges at Juhu Koliwada and Otter’s Club, along with tolling systems to ensure smooth access.
But building such a massive structure in open sea under the weight of environmental concerns, social sensitivities, and urban constraints is no small task. The project had to overcome:
- The coordination of over a dozen stakeholders, from the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSDRC) and contractors to engineers and environmental bodies.
- Construction challenges across high tides, monsoons, and open marine stretches.
- Community and ecological considerations, including working with local fishing communities.
- Delays due to the pandemic and associated disruptions.
What kept the project on course? A commitment to innovation, collaboration, and a digital-first approach to infrastructure delivery.
Digital project management driving sea link construction
Recognizing the complexity of the challenge, MSRDC partnered with ABM Knowledgeware Ltd. and NTT Data Business Solutions, supported by Bentley, to implement an integrated digital project management system (DPMS).
This digital platform acts as the central nervous system of the project, unifying people, processes, and data into a single connected environment. Bentley’s suite of applications, including Bentley are at the heart of this transformation.
Here’s how Bentley technology is driving the project forward:
- 4D and 5D simulations bring together design, schedule, and cost, enabling data-driven construction planning.
- ProjectWise ensures seamless collaboration across distributed teams by keeping everyone aligned with the latest models and documents.
- AssetWise helps futureproof infrastructure by tracking every component’s lifecycle from design to operations.
- SYNCHRO gives stakeholders visibility into progress, delays, and critical activities through an integrated digital construction platform.
- Centralized dashboards ensure that schedule, cost, risk, and sustainability targets are monitored in real time.
This is digital delivery in action, aligning perfectly with Bentley’s mission to empower infrastructure professionals to design, build, and operate more efficiently.
More than steel: How a bridge is connecting people, purpose, and progress
But this bridge is doing more than cutting commute times—it’s weaving together the many layers of a living, breathing city. Along the shorelines, fishing communities are watching their waters change, their concerns heard and addressed through ongoing dialogue. Environmentalists track how the construction interacts with tides, marine life, and mangroves, and their insights are shaping smarter decisions.
For those of us in the infrastructure world, it’s a clear signal: projects today aren’t just about what we build, but how we build it with transparency, collaboration, and care. The Versova-Bandra Sea Link isn’t just keeping up with global trends, it’s quietly leading the way, showing that sustainability, technology, and social responsibility don’t have to compete. They can coexist and elevate each other.
Early results: Faster approvals, less paper, better decisions
At its core, the Versova-Bandra Sea Link is delivering lasting social impacts, improving urban mobility, reducing environmental strain, and making daily life smoother for millions.
This project:
- Reduces travel time, fuel consumption, and traffic congestion.
- Supports sustainability by lowering vehicle emissions.
- Enhances access to healthcare, education, and economic opportunities across the city.
- Demonstrates the value of connected data, collaboration, and digital workflows in modern infrastructure.
Already, tangible results are emerging in the project’s development:
- Document approvals that once took a week now take a day.
- Paper usage has been drastically reduced.
- Design quality and revision control have improved.
- Project teams are empowered to make faster, better-informed decisions.
This is what it means to advance infrastructure intelligently and responsibly, a vision Bentley shares with every organization it partners with.
Mumbai, reimagined
The Versova-Bandra Sea Link is scheduled to be completed by 2028, but its benefits are already visible in smarter decisions, tighter collaboration, and a new standard for infrastructure development in India.
This is not just a bridge.
It’s a symbol of how infrastructure, when powered by data, driven by purpose, and executed with integrity, can change the trajectory of a city.
So, next time you’re caught in traffic or waiting at a signal, look toward the sea.
What you’ll see isn’t just construction. It’s transformation. A better-connected, better-performing Mumbai is on the rise.
