Days after BMC opens up the Juhu Tara road bridge for light vehicles, it will remove the height barriers to make way for tall Ganesh idols
Barriers will be removed for six days of the festival. Pic/Nimesh Dave
Just two weeks after opening up the Juhu Tara road bridge for light vehicles, the BMC plans to remove height barriers installed on it, to make way for Ganesh idols. As the bridge forms a crucial part of the route that Ganesh mandals take for immersion of idols, the height barriers will be removed for six days of the festival, a decision taken in consultation with Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI) experts.
The Juhu Tara road bridge, which was completely shut for vehicular traffic from Gazdharbandh junction to Juhu beach since June 3, after being declared dilapidated in an audit report, reopened on August 9. The bridge is crucial for traffic from Juhu to Bandra. After the traffic police diverted vehicles to S V Road and Vaikunthlal Mehta Marg at Vile Parle, the SNDT College Road also allowed traffic from the internal road as an alternative to the Juhu Tara road bridge.
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Civic sources revealed that the decision to remove height barriers for the festive period was taken in consultation with VJTI experts, as they were appointed to examine the bridge and give suggestions on whether it could be temporarily opened. However, the civic body had decided to install height barriers owing to which the opening of the bridge got delayed by 10 days.
Now with Ganesh Chaturthi round the corner, this road forms a crucial part of the route that tall Ganesh idols take to Juhu beach. Civic sources said the traffic police, city police, bridge department and ward office in coordination with the VJTI consultants decided to remove the height barriers (height of 3.5 metres) but they would ensure that trolleys and trucks do not enter the bridge during those six days.
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Speaking on condition of anonymity, a BMC official said, "This decision was taken recently after few mandals in the area requested the police and ward office to remove the barriers temporarily. It won't be a problem because usually the weight of Ganesh idols is not more than 1 tonne. But load-carrying trucks and trolleys weighing more than 10 tonnes will still not be allowed on the bridge." Even after repeated attempts to contact Sanjay Darade, chief engineer of bridge department, he remained unavailable.
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3.5m
Height at which the barriers have been put up
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