Thursday, Apr 18, 2024 | Last Update : 04:07 PM IST
ROB closure baffles pedestrians
They are confused about how to reach their destinations.
MUMBAI: The closure of Lower Parel’s Delisle Road Overbridge (ROB) for repairs and reconstruction on Tuesday inconvenienced pedestrians, who were confused as to how to reach their destinations.
After looking at the morning chaos, 20 Railway Police Force (RPF) personnel were deployed to manage the crowd. A pedestrian said that before shutting down the ROB, the authorities should have made alternative arrangements.
The Railways instructed the traffic police and the Brihanmumbai Munici-pal Corporation (BMC) on Sunday to shut the bridge and five other ROBs in the wake of the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay submitting its findings after carrying out a detailed technical inspection of the bridge.
According to an RPF officer, three Maharashtra Security Force (MSF) officers were deployed, but as the crowds started towards Lower Parel, 10 RPF personnel joined in. In addition to this, A.K. Singh, inspector general cum principal chief security commissioner of Western Railway’s (WR) RPF, also went to monitor the situation in the morning. Mr Singh also chalked out a plan how to manage the crowd.
Babalu Verma (23), who works in a hotel, arrived at Lower Patel from Dadar on Tuesday afternoon. He said, “Every day I travel by a share taxi from Delisle bridge to Worli. But I wasted over 20 minutes wandering from Currey Road to Lower Parel station to ask people from where I could get a taxi.”
He added, “I am confused as there is no one who can inform pedestrians how to travel from point A to point B (Lower Parel to Worli).”
Sachin Rangnekar (44), a project manager in an IT firm, said, “Before closing the Lower Parel ROB, the authorities should have made alternative arrangements for pedestrians.”
Mr Rangnekar also said that he feared that if he uses the Lower Parel foot overbridge (FOB), a ticket checker might catch him as he travels from Thane to Currey Road and he does not have a WR ticket. “WR should open its FOBs for pedestrians so that ticket checkers do not harass them,” he added.
Pedestrians also said that, due to the closure of the ROB, it took them a far longer time to reach to their offices. Lower Parel is a commercial hub.
