Senior HRBC engineers said the work involved replacing two types of cables—stay cables and holding-down cables—and that Sunday’s shutdown was intended to complete a portion of the task. They said additional traffic closures will be required before the rehabilitation is completed.HRBC is working to overhaul the 33-year-old bridge. Officials said that out of the 152 stay cables, 19 are to be replaced. The replacement of the first 4 hold-down cables has been completed, and 15 are left to be done in a phase-wise manner. Weekly closures are being enforced on Sundays for HRBC to carry out work.The 823-metre-long Vidyasagar Setu, which opened to traffic back in October 1992, is the first and is known to be the longest cable-stayed bridge in the country. It has a 35-metre width, with 152 cables using steel pylons to hold the bridge structure.
