Pedestrians in Byculla and Parel negotiate death traps every day……..Pandurang Mhaske
Mumbai: It is a death trap for pedestrians near the ITC Grand Central Hotel, Parel, and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Railway Hospital, Byculla. There is just no space to walk. Footpaths in both places have been dug up. Blame it on the flyovers being constructed at the sites.
For the past one-and-a-half months, residents of the two areas have been treading the roads, putting their lives at stake. Crossing the road in either of the places is like crossing a minefield every step fraught with risk in the never-ending flow of traffic.
It is a morning mayhem every day along the stretch dug up near the Grand Central. The signal at the junction results in traffic snarls extending right up to the Parel Bridge.
Schoolchildren and their parents have been most affected by this unplanned work, Ganesh Adivarekar, a local resident, said. There is no space for them to walk. Last month, a mother was taking her kid to school. A car honked, and she had to jump into the crater with her kid.
Naresh Shetty, another resident, said, No one knows how long will it take for this nightmare to end. Even our corporators say they have no idea.
All hell breaks loose at Byculla every evening, with heavy traffic flowing northward. Residents walking back home from Byculla station, have to brave the dug up footpath near Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Railway Hospital. A three-foot deep crater on the footpath is an open invitation to break your leg.
Mangesh Bansod, corporator from Byculla, has raised the issue in a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation standing committee meeting, seeking a solution to the pedestrians problem. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is shifting stalls and digging up the footpath, he said.
The MMRDA wants to reduce footpaths and expand roads to make room for the ever-increasing flow of traffic. But before footpaths are reduced, the network of various utilities running underneath them will have to be shifted.
Service providers having underground networks are doing their work. It will take some time, RA Rajeev, additional municipal commissioner, said.