It's 'crater' Mumbai again after a rainy week, motorists fume

MUMBAI: Motorists are fuming as potholes are making their deadly presence felt again on city roads, especially where Metro works are ongoing, after just one week of consistent heavy rains.

Besides Western Express Highway, activists and motorists have complained about 'craters' emerging on roads in areas undergoing Mumbai Metro construction. While the BMC claimed that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is responsible for maintaining the roads where Mumbai Metro works are on, citizens and activists argue that a single authority should be held accountable for the upkeep of these stretches.

"On roads where Metro construction works are on, traffic is restricted to either one or two lanes. This increased traffic load leads to further wear and tear of roads," activist Zoru Bhathena said. "In Santacruz, the pothole problem has persisted since last year even as the BMC and Metro authorities continue to squabble over who will fix them."

Mustaq Ansari, an activist from Mahim, said Mumbai Metro works are creating traffic bottlenecks in the area. Pointing out that there are potholes on all roads from Mahim to Bandra and Santacruz where Metro works are on, he added: "On SV Road too, more potholes have emerged with the recent rains having washed out the stretch. Authorities need to sit together and resolve the issue so that citizens do not face inconvenience."

Citizen activist Madhu Poplai from the Pali Hill residents' association in Bandra claimed that potholes have emerged on roads even where pre-monsoon works had been undertaken by the BMC. "The patches where pre-monsoon road repair works were taken up have all been ripped off again and there are pebbles on the stretches making it difficult for motorists to drive on them," said Poplai.

When contacted, a senior BMC official, on condition of anonymity, said, "At SV Road, Metro 2B works are on. This road is to be maintained by the MMRDA. The local wards are continuously following up with the MMRDA for bad patch / pothole complaints."

When TOI reached out to MMRDA authorities, an official, who did not wish to be identified, said that pre-monsoon road resurfacing works had been undertaken by them. "We do not wait for complaints to come in, but proactively act on areas where bad patches are spotted," said the official.


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