MUMBAI: The traffic police are gearing up for one of their worst nightmares. The job entails managing the diversion of 60% of Mumbai's traffic for the approximately two years it will take for the Pedder Road flyover to be constructed.
The police fear that the arterial route will have to be closed for at least three years for work to proceed on the %4.4-km bridge between Lala Lajpat Rai College near Haji Ali and Wilson College near Girgaum Chowpatty. The resulting mess can well be imagined as Pedder Road is the conduit for around two lakh vehicles a day. "It's not only about diverting traffic that comes to Pedder Road, but also that from the areas along and around the road," said a traffic expert.
Owing to controversy, it was not clear for long whether the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) would have the will to proceed with the project. But now, the construction company intends to invite tenders for the flyover by May after seeking clearance for the project from the Union environment ministry.
Work on the flyover can impact the movement of traffic not only in south Mumbai, but also other parts of the city. Already, a number of flyovers are being built on the city's east, because of which over 40,000 cars from the eastern suburbs go west and take the Bandra-Worli sea link to reach Byculla and CST down south instead of the usual Dr Ambedkar and P D'Mello roads, thus clogging up the roads along the western coastline.
"The ongoing construction of the eastern freeway, King's Circle, Suman Nagar and Burfiwala (Andheri) flyovers, the monorail route between Jacob Circle and Chembur via Wadala, and the metro corridor between Versova and Ghatkopar have disrupted traffic in those areas," said a transportation expert.
"Now take the proposed Pedder Road flyover into consideration. The MSRDC has said that it will be constructed only during the night so that the impact on day-time and peak hour movement of traffic is minimal. But if the corporation wants to complete the Rs 200-crore project in the targeted 18 months, it can't limit the construction work to only the night.
"The pace of work will also be affected even if one lane on either side of the road is left open to traffic."
Clearly, the 18-month time limit is unrealistic. Urban planners say that flyovers smaller than the proposed Pedder Road one have taken a minimum of two years to be completed. They say that because of the complex network of underground utilities along Pedder Road and the prospect of litigation by residents and other opponents of the project, the work will stretch to at least three years, meaning traffic disruption for such a period of time.
"If the network of utilities like pipelines and cables is complicated and deep, then work on the flyover will certainly stretch to more than 30 months," said a town planning expert.
Recently, the traffic police submitted a vehicular diversion plan pertaining to the project to the MSRDC. They have proposed two routes for Churchgate- and CST-bound traffic; one via Mumbai Central for CST, and the other back to Pedder Road via Tardeo junction.
An urban infrastructure expert said the MSRDC would require 18 months just to raise the pillars for the flyover. Another 18 months will be needed to put up the girders and complete the over bridge.
But MSRDC managing director and vice-chairman Bipin Shrimali insisted that the corporation has prepared a plan according to which the flyover can be constructed within 18 months.
"We will put the construction work out to tender by May," he said. "The work will be carried out in such fashion during the night that people are not inconvenienced due to noise or subjected to traffic jams. We will also try to keep one lane open on either side of the road for the duration of the work."
An MSRDC official said that among those who stay along the road, "those who will be the most inconvenienced by the construction work may get special passes for their vehicles. They include, besides residents, those working at schools and other institutions".
Allaying the police's fears, he said the corporation would arrange for people to be deployed along the road to manage traffic. "A committee would be formed to monitor the construction work. The panel will also listen to the grievances of residents and will submit frequent reports to the state and the Centre."
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