Metro 3 work changes traffic pattern in city
Roads of the city have been reduced as barricades are placed due to the ongoing construction work of the Metro III (Colaba-BandraSEEPZ) line. The construction sites of this 33.5 kilometre metro line are barricaded which has led to increasing traffic congestion causing inconvenience to daily commuters. This is the first underground metro line of Mumbai.
As the metro line stretches from Andheri (east) in the western suburbs to Cuffe Parade and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) area in the town side, which marks the end of the island city, the traffic movement is disrupted on the entire route. One side of the major roads is occupied by barricades which has left very less space for smooth movement of vehicles. At some junctions, the barricades are even crossing footpaths and almost nearing shops and establishments thus making it difficult for pedestrians.
Commuters have complained constantly about long hours of waiting in traffic jams and reduced pedestrian space. Mihir Desai, a commuter said, “The roads at areas like Andheri, Dadar and Worli are busy lanes with continuous flow of traffic. Due to the barricades three to four lanes of vehicle movement have been reduced to two lanes. This adds to the traffic jam especially during peak hours as there are a lot of vehicles headed towards both the north and south end.”
The road traffic in Mumbai has a specific direction. It majorly flows from the western suburbs to the town side during the peak hours in the morning. This comprises of the working population and the youth heading to colleges in South Mumbai. While in the evening, this same flow of vehicular traffic moves back to the suburbs. Therefore, as the barricades are on this main stretch the flow of vehicles is slowed down due to lack of space.
Daily commuters experience this traffic practically every day either in the morning or evening. Jayesh Mane, a working youth, said, “I am stuck in stagnant traffic every day either while heading to office or while returning home because one portion of the main road has barricades. And in the reduced space there are all kinds of vehicles like buses, trucks, autorickshaws struggling to find their way out.”
In South Bombay (SoBo), some of the roads have been diverted, blocked and converted into one ways. Neha Singh, a resident of Charni Road, said, “The GirgaonKalbadevi Road has been converted into a one way. The two way BEST buses have also been stopped from plying at this road. The usual commute time has doubled. Earlier it would take around 15 minutes to reach Churchgate but now it takes around 25 to 30 minutes.”
While at Colaba, Churchgate and CST, the routes are diverted with additional barricades for pedestrians. Cheryl Athaide, a commuter said, “We cannot commute with our private vehicle from Flora Fountain towards CST through D.N. Road which is the most commonly used easy route. There is a diversion and we need to go all the way around instead of going directly.”
In order to tackle the traffic issue, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC), the agency implementing the work of this metro line, has appointed traffic marshals to help commuters.
R Ramana, Executive Director (Planning) of MMRC, said, “The contractors at various sites have employed local youth and residents as traffic marshals to control movement of vehicles. The marshals help commuters by directing them about various diversions and road blocks.”
These marshals are trained by the Mumbai Traffic Police about the basics of road traffic management. The marshals work in three shifts daily. Dilip Jagtap, a traffic marshal, said, “We have been employed to help the commuters. While driving commuters do not pay much attention to the traffic signs and diversions and often tend to enter a route which is blocked therefore we direct them.”