07 April,2017 03:35 AM IST | | Ranjeet Jadhav
As part of the Station Area Traffic Improvement Scheme (SATIS), bus and taxi stands located beneath mono rail stations would be shifted 40-50 metres away from their current spots as the MMRDA is of the opinion that the present set up is leading to traffic congestion and restricting public movement
Traffic congestion near the Chembur monorail station. FILE PIC
As part of the Station Area Traffic Improvement Scheme (SATIS), bus and taxi stands located beneath mono rail stations would be shifted 40-50 metres away from their current spots as the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is of the opinion that the present set up is leading to traffic congestion and restricting public movement. Just like Thane, the scheme would be implemented along the Jacob Circle - Wadala monorail corridor, which is expected to be thrown open this year.
Highly congested
The Jacob Circle - Wadala monorail phase-II passes through one of the most congested parts of the city, which includes Central Mumbai suburbs like Wadala, Kalachowkie, Parel, Currey road, Chinchpokli and Jacob circle.
During construction of the monorail it was observed that places along the corridor face a number of problems, which includes illegal parking on roads, encroachments on footpaths and lack of space for pedestrians to walk. It has also been observed that BEST bus stops and taxi stands beneath monorail stations lead to a lot of traffic jams.
Safety concerns
Speaking to mid-day, MMRDA joint project director Dilip Kawatkar said, "We want to provide a safe and hassle-free journey to commuters, who will avail the monorail services. Hence we plan to implement SATIS along the phase II monorail corridor."
However, MMRDA has successfully implemented the scheme along the 11.04km-long Versova Andheri Ghatkopar metro line. As a result, the area does not face any congestion problems. If the scheme comes into force along the phase II monorail corridor, then it would not only solve the problem of illegal parking, but would also help clear the space of encroachments.
