Mumbai: Declared dangerous, but these bridges are still operational

It does not take lengthy and unending audits to inspect dangerous structures along Mumbai's railway line. A simple survey done by mid-day has revealed how a dilapidated 'dangerous' substation and at least two 'unsafe' bridges shut for public use continue to stand over busy rail lines that ferry around eight million passengers every day.

While the railways pat their backs over IIT-certified audit reports and taking up minor repairs here and there, these dilapidated structures continue to stare commuters in the face.

On Western Railway, foot overbridges at Matunga Road and Bandra (top) Stand dangerously over WR's main line that ferries over 1,300 trains daily

On the Central Railway (CR) line, one such structure is the old 1,500 V Direct Current (DC) sub-station between Vikhroli and Kanjurmarg. It stands precariously with the support of metal props and has been marked dangerous in bold letters, warning everyone to stay away from it.

It is located between two railway corridors that ferry the densest of crowds - the mainline fast locals and the mail and express trains leaving Mumbai. While the main line ferries 858 local trains on weekdays, the mail and express line see over 50 trains daily.

Also Read: CST foot overbridge collapse: Pulled up engineers blame contractor

The old 1500V Direct Current sub-station between Vikhroli and Kanjurmarg has been marked dangerous in bold letters, warning everyone to stay away from it but has not been demolished

Occupied by druggies

When mid-day visited the site, it was occupied by urchins and drug addicts who have made it their safe haven. The situation is similar in other abandoned DC power sub-stations at Mulund and Ghatkopar. These sub-stations fell into disuse after the Central Railway was converted into AC power traction mode in 2015.

"Is the railways waiting for a disaster to happen? Why do such things need to be told to them?" asked Subhash Gupta of CR's Zonal Railway Users' Consultative Committee.

The foot overbridge at Bandra station that has not been dismantled yet

Also Read: Mumbai: Civic body makes a U-turn, blames auditing agency for mishap

'Dismantle shut bridges'
On Western Railway (WR), foot overbridges at Matunga Road and Bandra, that have outlived their age and declared unsafe and shut for public use have been in the process of demolition for quite a few months now. They are standing dangerously over WR's main line that ferries over 1,300 trains daily. Both the old bridges have been built by the erstwhile Bombay Baroda and Central India Railway.

The old 1,500 V Direct Current (DC) sub-station between Vikhroli and Kanjurmarg has become a safe haven for urchins and drug addicts

"While the railways have built alternative bridges in its place, it is important to dismantle older ones for public safety," said Shailesh Goyal of WR's Zonal Railway Users' Consultative Committee.

Responding to the issues regarding the structures, CR officials said they will try and dismantle the structures before monsoon. A WR spokesperson said, "The dismantling of structures involves taking a block and stopping trains. It shall be done in a phased manner as soon as possible without inconvenience to commuters."

No lessons learnt?

After the heritage pillars at CSMT were damaged last year during a protest march, which led to subsequent uproar, organisers of a trade union repeated the act on Monday, by tying up the stage support and other banners to a heritage pillar in the UNESCO-listed heritage building. It seems as if no lessons were learnt from last year's incident, to rectify which the Central Railway had to spend a significant amount of money.

Also Read: Azad Maidan cops desperately seeking professor who last audited the CSMT foot overbridge

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