The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Wednesday announced that to prevent vehicles from speeding on the newly-built Ghatkopar-Mankhurd Link Road (GMLR) flyover, the bridges department will instal speed breakers and CCTV cameras.
The move came a day after a 34-year-old man died and another 27-year-old sustained severe injuries after their two-wheeler skidded on the bridge. While activists, local residents and the BJP in the BMC blamed the bridges department for carrying out shoddy construction, BMC engineers maintained there is no structural fault in the flyover. On Wednesday, Free Press Journal had reported that motorists and locals have complained about asphalt oozing an oily substance that is making the flyover slippery.
BMC chief engineer Satish Thosar said speed breakers will be installed every 500 meters on the bridge; besides, there will also be speed trackers. Thosar said the repair works have already begun and the bridge is partially shut at present. He added that repairs will take at least one week. “To prevent vehicles from skidding on the asphalt surface, portions of the road that have become slippery will be roughened,” he said.
The 2.9-km flyover was opened for vehicular movement on August 1. The speed limit on the bridge is 50 kmph and at present heavy vehicles and four-wheelers with height more than three meters are not allowed due to high-tension electric wires at one end of the flyover. BMC officials maintained that they are following up with the Maharashtra State Electricity Development Corporation Limited (MSEDCL) for raising the height of the poles, following which heavy vehicles may be allowed.
Another civic official on condition of anonymity said there are hoardings displaying the speed limits on the bridge but motorists don’t seem to follow them. “We have conducted a site inspection and it has become evident that over-speeding is the primary reason for all the accidents in the last one month,” he said.
Abu Azmi, local MLA from Mankhurd-Shivaji Nagar, who had earlier written to guardian minister Aaditya Thackeray seeking structural review of the bridge, said that two-wheelers should not be allowed on the bridge.
Azmi said, “All the young people from the area get on the bridge with their two-wheelers and don’t follow the rules. The BMC should ban their entry for everyone’s safety as the road below is in good condition and motorists can use that easily.”
