Sea link’s end points choked with traffic after toll is waived

The move to scrap old Rs500 and Rs1,000 may not only have caused a severe cash crunch, but also more traffic jams in the financial capital of the country. The number of vehicles using the Bandra-worli Sea Link (BWSL) has gone up after tolls were waived off in the aftermath of demonetisation, according to the Mumbai traffic police.

A traffic policeman said more motorists are taking the sea link to commute from the western suburbs to south Mumbai fic snarls during morning and evening peak hours, officials said.

“Now that the route is free for a limited period, commuters who are headed to Lower Parel and Prabhadevi are also using the sea link. This has led to more pressure on the entrance and exit points of the route,” said Pankaj Shirshat, assistant commissioner of police, traffic (western suburbs).

Traffic officials said motorists usually use the BWSL only during emergencies. However, this changed when the central government decided to waive off toll notes were declared to be of no legal value from November 9.

Heavy snarls were reported on the southbound stretch of the 3.1-km route yet again on Tues day morning. With a surge in the number of vehicles, average travel time on the route has increased by at least 15 minutes say traffic police officers. On an average, motorists take around 10 minutes to cross from Bandra to Worli.

A motorist Ajay Singh tweeted, “The Legend of the Worli Sealink, first you feel the bliss as it is toll free, and then you see it choked as whole Mumbai is