Mumbai: Five years after collapse, Himalaya FOB still incomplete

The stairway leading to the escalator

A year after the Himalaya Bridge at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) was opened for public use, the BMC is still struggling to complete the work on the escalator for the bridge. Once ready, commuters would have to climb at least 12 steps to access the escalator of the new foot overbridge (FOB). The bridge collapsed on March 14, 2019, exactly five years ago.

A staircase that leads to the escalator can be seen at several Metro stations where the escalators are accessible from roads. The escalators are installed at height to avoid damage due to water logging or to avoid being hit by vehicles or any other material. But the height is mostly two to three feet with five to six stairs. However, at CST, the gap between the escalator and the road is more than seven feet and the corporation constructed 12 steps leading to it. The first step is currently one and a half feet higher that the ground level. But as the construction is still ongoing, there are chances that the height may be reduced a little.

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"The BMC engineers design structures at their ease and not to help the citizens. The Himalaya FOB is one more example of this. The escalator is supposed to provide easy access to the disabled, women and senior citizens. What is the use of the escalator if commuters have to climb stairs half of the way up? We will request the civic chief to lower the escalator level," said Subhash Gupta, a member of the National Railway Users' Consultative Committee.

Nandkumar Deshmukh, a rail passenger activist, said that the escalator being installed at such a height is unacceptable. "We will raise the demand with the BMC and Central Railway officials as this will affect commuters," he said.

On March 14, 2019, seven lives were lost due to the bridge collapse while several others were injured. Following the incident, the BMC conducted a re-audit of all the road bridges, FOBs and skywalks across the city. This led to the demolition of the Delisle Bridge at Lower Parel. That bridge was open for traffic last year, but the civic body is yet to complete the work of the Himalaya Bridge which is only 30 metres long and six metres wide. Vivek Kalyankar, chief of BMC's bridges department and P Velarasu, additional municipal commissioner (in charge of roads and bridges) did not respond to calls or messages.

Himalaya FOB work and delays

>>BMC took 7 months to decide on whether the FOB is needed
>>Decision to rebuild FOB was taken after survey revealed over 50,000 people used the bridge daily
>>COVID-induced restrictions delayed the work
>>BMC floated tender for FOB (without escalator) in June 2021
>>Word was to be completed in 15 months at R5.75 crore
>>Work was further delayed due to various reasons, including shifting of underground utilities
>>Bridge opened in March 2023 without escalator
>>BMC decided to include escalator to access FOB in 2022
>>Delay in sanctioning Rs 1.25 crore additional cost stalled work again
>>BMC sanctioned the proposal in November 2023
>>Work on the escalator continues till date