Mumbai: Speed or bone breakers?

A damaged speed breaker near Khwaja Seth chawl at Sakinaka, Andheri. Pics/Satej Shinde

Speed breakers, as the name explains, are meant for motorists, bikers to slow down. But many Mumbaikars have encountered some that they say are vehicle, or even back/bone breakers. While they claim some speed breakers are badly constructed, some they said are even damaged and unrepaired. In the first of a two-parts series, mid-day takes a look at the speed bumps in the suburbs and how difficult it is to use them.

mid-day reporters visited a few spots in Mumbai and found the speed bumps there in very bad shape. While near Kurla station road speed breakers were damaged, at Andheri and Dadar speed breakers were huge. According to road safety guidelines, there should be a sign board mentioning that a speed breaker is ahead. But there is no signboard at most of these places. None of the speed breakers even had markings, making them more dangerous at nights.

Andheri-Ghatkopar Link Road

The Ghatkopar-Andheri Junction Road is one of the major roads in Mumbai and there are odd sized speed breakers between Asalfa and Sakinaka metro station here. Drivers have to highly reduce the speed of vehicles to cross these speed breakers, adding to the traffic jam. There are 5 speed breakers here at a distance of about one km.

An unmaintained speed breaker inside Aarey Milk Colony

"The whole of Andheri-Ghatkopar Link Road has had problematic speed breakers for many years. There are speed breakers every 15-20 metres distance. They are of different sizes. I had written an email to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's office regarding them but the situation has not changed. So now I have stopped using this road," said civic activist Godfrey Pimenta.

Aarey Milk Colony

While it is extremely important to have speed breakers on the internal roads in Aarey Milk Colony as they pass the forest area - so that wild animals can cross the roads safely - the speed breakers here are not painted, making them difficult to spot at night.

"Already, at many locations on the internal roads in Aarey Milk Colony, the street lights are not working. The speed breakers at many locations on the internal road between New Zealand hostel and Aarey check naka are not visible during the night, posing a threat to motorists and two-wheeler riders," said a resident, Sunny Dubey.

Due to the uneven height of the speed breakers at many places in Mumbai, motorists have to spend money on repairing their cars which get damaged. Talking to mid-day, a motorist, Sumit Ghavri said, "Road contractors should design speed breakers keeping in mind the ground clearance of vehicles. I travel by my car in the city on a regular basis and it's a task to cross some speed breakers because they are too high. While crossing one such speed breaker in Aarey Milk Colony last year, the oil tank of my car got damaged and I had to pay close to R10,000 for repairs."

Fisheries University Road

Motorists and two-wheeler riders staying in Seven Bungalows are inconvenienced as the speed breakers are neither in good condition nor are there sign boards warning about them. Markings on speed breakers have also disappeared.

Talking to mid-day, a bike rider, Tanaji Koyate said, "A few speed breakers on the fisheries road are not in good condition because of which we face problems. One speed breaker near Badrinath Tower does not have markings and is not constructed properly, increasing the chances of accidents in the night."

Juhu galli, Andheri West

This road connects Andheri to Versova, so during peak hours the number of vehicles here is high. Motorists said crossing the speed breakers here feels like climbing hills as they are very high and wide.

A biker from Andheri who uses Juhu lane regularly, Hitendra Pachkale said, "The speed breakers here are in the worst condition. At Juhu galli there are huge speed breakers. On Andheri Ghatkopar Link Road also they are huge and also damaged. This makes riding them a bad experience. These are not speed breakers but back breakers of motorists and bikers!"

Payal Ambavi, a businesswoman and resident of Versova, commutes via the Andheri road every day. "The speed breakers on the road are very huge. Passengers always experience a jerk when going over them. Mostly, those near the slum areas are wide and huge," she said. Mumbai Marathi Grantha Sangrahalaya Road.

This is a busy road at Dadar, but still, there are huge speed breakers on it. Anand Yadav, a resident of Dadar, said the BMC has built them where they are not needed. "Also, the speed breaker here is very wide, more than 2 feet wide. Another road on Wadala Industrial estate has the same issue," Yadav said.

Experts speak

Jitendra Gupta, mobility expert, feels speed breakers are made under political pressure. Gupta said, there are guidelines for speed breakers that need to be followed but are not. "Many times, speed breakers are made due to political pressure or in case of an accident. But rules are not followed. There is no signboard marking. Besides vehicle damage, passengers are also sometimes hurt due to the speed breaker," said Gupta.

"The roads of Mumbai are in a dismal state. Speed breakers are placed randomly without logic, and in most places, there are no signs to alert the driver. There is no standard for speed-breakers' size and last but not least there is no paint on speed-breakers! Why is it so BMC?" questioned the popular ‘Roads of Mumbai' community handle on social media X.

3.7m
Mandatory width of a speed breaker

Indian Road Congress (IRC) guidelines

IRC guidelines stipulate that a speed breaker should have a radius of 17 metres with a height of 0.10 metres and a width of 3.7metres. As per specifications, speed breakers must be used only in urban areas for minor roads and residential areas. Speed breakers are not recommended on high-speed roads or highways outside urban limits. As per the rules, all speed breakers must be painted with alternate black and white stripes. In addition, cat eye illumination can be used to enhance visibility at night if necessary.