Upon discovering that at least 60 utility cables had been laid along the collapsed portion of the Andheri road overbridge (ROB), Western Railway authorities have written to the civic body on the matter. "The collective weight of so many utility cables may have contributed to the collapse of the bridge. We have written to the BMC to look into limiting the number of utility cables laid over such bridges," said Mukul Jain, divisional railway manager.

Many utility companies opt to lay wires along bridges, as this is easier and cheaper than putting them under the railway lines, which would require microtunelling. The utility companies pay a fee to the BMC for this arrangement, which is also less than the charge levied by the railways. "It is not that the railways do not allow utility cables to pass under the network, but besides levying fees, there are stringent norms and national rail standards for how this should be done," said DRM Jain.