Despite deciding earlier this year not to build skywalks in future, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has proposed to construct a 550-metre-long skywalk at a cost of Rs 20 crore
Despite deciding earlier this year not to build skywalks in future, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has proposed to construct a 550-metre-long skywalk at a cost of Rs 20 crore connecting Thane station with Vitawa in Kalwa. MMRDA has insisted that the design of the proposed skywalk would have proper planning, unlike in the past when some of its skywalks were criticised for not being useful.
The proposed Thane-Vitawa skywalk would be over railway tracks and Ulhas river.
The development body earlier this year had said that it would neither construct new skywalks nor maintain the existing ones, and concentrate on major infrastructure projects of the city and metropolitan region.
“The proposed skywalk was planned years ago and is the need of the hour as the design of the skywalk passes over railway tracks and river, which would result in more number of people using it,” said an MMRDA official.
About eight years ago, MMRDA had planned to build 56 skywalks across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), but it could complete just 39 due to bad response from pedestrians and advertisers. As a result, MMRDA did not allocate any funds for the construction of skywalks in the financial budget of 2016-17.
Out of the 39 completed skywalks, around 23 in the city have been handed over to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for maintenance.
MMRDA had expected to earn significant revenue by selling advertisement rights on skywalks. However, they failed to attract enough advertisers, thus losing chances of earning any substantial revenue.
