Mumbai: City’s 26 deadly spots revealed

Shankarwadi bus stop in Jogeshwari was identified as a black spot on Western Express Highway. Pics/Satej Shinde

The Mumbai Police Traffic Division accident analysis cell has identified 26 most deadly spots across the city. These black spots have been prone to accidents, claiming many lives and leaving others with lifelong injuries. mid-day spoke to various transport experts to find out the reason for these black spots and how they can be tackled to reduce the number of accidents.

M Ramkumar, additional commissioner of police (traffic), told mid-day, "The 26 spots were identified based on the number of accidents. The Western Express Highway (WEH) and Eastern Express Highway (EEH) were also included in the analysis. There were more spots in the previous list, but since the number of accidents over the years has decreased because of preventive measures and stationing of officials, those spots were removed from this list. According to the spots shortlisted, the most accidents over the last four years took place on the Sion Panvel highway, opposite Jakat Naka Chowki in Mankhurd while the least accidents were recorded on Bindu Madhav Thackeray Junction, Vikhroli East."

Causes for black spots

On what causes black spots, A V Shenoy, senior transport expert with Mumbai Mobility Forum, said, "The main reason is road engineering. Black spots should be spotted at the time of building the roads themselves. The blind curves, crossings and other major things need to be caught during the road engineering stages so that potential black spots can be dealt with. Usually, these are the spots where accidents occur. This is a part of road engineering and road planners must make decisions so that black spots do not occur. Highways are prone to black spots. Planners take these things very lightly, which is why multiple accidents on these roads occur."

He added, "While planning bypass routes when there is some construction work going, multiple things need to be taken into account. If a bypass is a potential black spot, there is no point in making a diversion. Speeding is another main factor leading to road crashes. Many times, the vehicle gets out of control because of speeding. Wrong-side driving can also be considered a major culprit for the same" he added.

Another transport expert requesting anonymity said, "Illegal hawkers encroaching footpaths causing spillage of pedestrians on already overcrowded roads, illegal parking on roads, inadequate signage and missing road marking are some other reasons for black spots being formed. As soon as these issues are dealt with, the number of accidents will substantially reduce. A recent study around May and April 2023 titled ‘slow down' conducted by IIT Bombay in collaboration with United Way Mumbai and government machinery studied 20 black spots and pointed out similar reasons for the spots becoming accident-prone. Critical road signage like ‘speed limit', ‘crash prone spot' and ‘merging sections ahead' is missing or inappropriately placed at many of the spots. Also, there are issues of roadside friction due to illegal roadside parking."

Corrective measures

A V Shenoy also pointed out some corrective measures required to make sure accidents on black spots are reduced saying, "Railways have a safety commissioner responsible for passing newly constructed tracks before a train runs on them. Without his approval, the new track cannot be made functional. For roads, there is no such safety commissioner. The contractor builds the road after which it is opened to traffic. But there is no one who ensures the road is black spot-free. Inspection by a competent authority should be a must for all roads."

He added, "There should be a thorough investigation after each accident to check whether the road construction was the reason behind it. If the government takes up this initiative, road accidents will be reduced drastically. We need a road safety commissioner just like the railway safety commissioner." While highlighting problems faced by pedestrians leading to grievous accidents, another expert said, "A continuous stretch of well-maintained footpath is necessary to discourage pedestrians from walking on carriageways where chances of accidents are high."

He also highlighted various issues on commute which need to be tackled immediately in order to curb accidents saying, "Potholes and rutting (grooves) should be removed and medians should be repainted with retro-reflective paints to improve visibility at night. Also, the uneven road surfaces on approaching the flyovers should be smoothened."

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No of spots surveyed for solutions