‘CM Shinde must step in to tackle Ghatkopar east-west bridge chaos’

Ghatkopar residents have written an email to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, requesting him to intervene in the reconstruction of the Ghatkopar east-west bridge. They have appealed for phase-wise reconstruction of the bridge so that motorists do not have to bear the brunt.

This comes as the Railways has decided to reconstruct the bridge, which is one of the important east-west connectors in the eastern suburbs. The nearest alternative for motorists is the Vikhroli Phatak rail overbridge, which is under construction and only 40 per cent of the work is complete so far. mid-day has on November 21 highlighted the issue.

Also read: Mumbai: Now, eastern suburbs stare at bridge mess!

Sachin Manjrekar, a Ghatkopar resident, who wrote the letter, said, "CM Shinde is Thanekar and he can understand the traffic woes. Authorities should think about the citizens too. We understand that the Ghatkopar bridge is dilapidated but there are several options. This bridge has four lanes. The authorities can start the work by demolishing two lanes and start reconstructing that part while vehicles are allowed to pass from the other two lanes. Once the first two lanes are complete, they can take up the other two."

"There is another option which is to construct a new bridge over the old one. And till the time the new bridge is built, light vehicles can be allowed on the old one. I am not an expert in the matter, but the authorities should understand our concerns too. Hence, we wrote a letter to the CM," he added.

Imtiyaz Sande, another resident, said, "The CM should hold a meeting with the authorities concerned. This is one of the important connectors between eastern and western suburbs. Despite the last CM asking the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation to complete the Vikhroli bridge on a war footing, we heard that only 40 per cent of the work is done so far. CM Shinde should review the condition of the bridges in the city and also listen to us, the people."