Service roads are just as important as main roads

Damaged service road in Goregaon. Pic/Anurag Ahire

The concreting of shabby service roads adjacent to both highways is part of a larger project to concrete the entire Western Express and Eastern Express Highways in phases over the next few years. The service roads will serve as additional lanes for heavy vehicles and facilitate access to the main carriageway, according to reports.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation issued a tender on September 23, with an estimated cost of Rs 1,591 crore to concrete approach roads totalling 44 km in length that connect both highways to major and minor roads in the city. Although there is debate over whether to concrete service roads, which are less utilised than main roads and often trenched due to utilities underneath, it is revealed that the concreting of service roads is not the ultimate goal but rather the initial step in the larger project to convert both highways into concrete roads.

These service roads are filled with potholes, and since the highways are used by heavy vehicles, the need for repair is urgent. We need to give equal attention to service roads, as long stretches carry a huge number of vehicles. Given our traffic density, service roads branching off or joining the main roads at a point, see significant traffic.

Service roads are also part and parcel of the overall road landscape. So, they need the same attention, maintenance and care as main roads. If neglected, many will tend to ignore them and use main roads, leading to unbearable congestion.

If there are potholes on this road, fix them as quickly as one would do a main road. The overall work must be the same quality as other roads. Look at commuting as a holistic package with service roads playing a vital, nodal role in the entire landscape. After all, accidents due to bad road work can happen anywhere, even on service roads. The surface, signage, lighting must be as good as anywhere else.