It's lights out for 10 km Vashi to Kharghar stretch of Sion-Panvel high

The pitch dark stretch of Vashi bridge. Pic/ Sneha Kharabe

The monsoon is just days away, yet the 10-km stretch on the Sion-Panvel highway from Vashi bridge to Kharghar continues to remain in pitch darkness. The streetlights here have not been working for a month now and residents allege that the authorities have been ignoring requests to look into the matter. When mid-day took a ride along the stretch, we found lights only in two or three spots, leaving the rest of the potholed stretch in darkness. The Sion-Panvel highway is a six-lane road constructed just a few years ago.

Muzzaffar Mujawar, a resident of Seawoods and a business development manager with a private firm in Sanpada, has stopped taking his motorcycle at night. "I use to travel by bike as it saved time. But, now I am forced to take the train because the road is extremely unsafe at night. The Juinagar flyover has so many twists and turns and one could have a bad accident in the pitch darkness."

Raj Kamble, a resident of Kharghar and a businessman, travels to Vashi daily, "The stretch has become a mess and will result in a huge accident one day, which is when the authorities will wake up.

Last monsoon, the Juinagar stretch had so many potholes leading to terrible traffic jams. This year, we will have to deal with dysfunctional street lights, too."

"The 20-km stretch from Vashi creek to Kalamboli Circle on the Sion-Panvel highway comes under the jurisdiction of the Navi Mumbai traffic police. But, for street lights one has to approach the public works department," said a senior officer from the Navi Mumbai traffic police.