‘Maha govt plans permanent fix for Andheri subway waterlogging’

Mumbai: Maharashtra government on Friday said it is working on a permanent solution to recurring traffic congestion caused by waterlogging at the Andheri subway in western Mumbai during the monsoon.Replying to a calling attention motion in the assembly, MoS Madhuri Misal said the BMC is undertaking multiple measures to address the issue.
MLA Murji Patel raised the issue, stating that the subway is the only link between Andheri East and Andheri West and frequently gets flooded during heavy rainfall, leading to severe traffic congestion.Misal said the subway is located in a low-lying area and Western Railway's suburban network runs above it, making widening or deepening technically difficult.She said waterlogging occurs when rainfall exceeds 19mm per hour.To mitigate the situation, the BMC deploys three pumps with a combined drainage capacity of 2,250 cubic metres per hour during the monsoon.She added that the renovated Gokhale Bridge has been opened to traffic and is used as an alternative route when the subway is closed. Traffic from SV Road is diverted to the bridge to prevent congestion in Andheri West.The minister said a Rs 197 crore project has been proposed to prevent flooding during heavy rainfall exceeding 55mm and added that a joint meeting of all departments will be convened to work out a permanent solution. PTI