In wake of senior citizen’s death, locals bemoan poor infra for pedestrians; BMC says will consider their suggestions; according to police sources, the accident occurred as the bus driver, identified as Akshay Surve, reportedly lost control of the vehicle
Ridge Road, the stretch at Malabar Hill that has only one pavement. According to residents, vehicles are often parked on both sides of the road, severely endangering pedestrians. PICS/SHADAB KHAN
The death of a 75-year-old woman on Tuesday morning at Malabar Hill, after a Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus crashed into a parked car near the Sahyadri Guest House, has once again drawn attention to Mumbai’s deteriorating pedestrian infrastructure.
While residents have expressed grief and anger over the incident, Niranjan Hiranandani, chairman of the National Real Estate Development Council and a close friend of the deceased, Neeta Shaha, has stated, “This is not just about my friend. This is about every pedestrian who is forced to risk their life just to walk. We’ve made progress in building skyscrapers, but we’ve failed to ensure safe walking spaces for our seniors and children. I appeal to the BMC to take immediate measures: ensure continuity of footpaths, remove illegal encroachments, and declare vulnerable zones as no-parking areas.”
The incident
According to police sources, the accident occurred as the bus driver, identified as Akshay Surve, reportedly lost control of the vehicle. Shaha, who was on her morning walk, got caught between the bus and the car during the collision and died on the spot. Speaking to reporters, the bus driver said that he was not speeding and expressed shock over the incident. Police said that they have registered an FIR against the driver under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) — including Section 281 (rash driving or riding on a public way), Section 106 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), Section 281 (rash driving), and Section 285 (causing danger or obstruction in a public way). Further investigation is underway to determine whether the accident was due to negligence, mechanical failure, or other factors. As per the preliminary post-mortem report, the cause of death is said to be due to multiple injuries.
Locals speak
Deeksha Mehta, a resident of the same locality, told mid-day, “I have been living here for the past 17 years, and the situation has changed drastically. While there always used to be VIP movement in the area, there wasn’t a risk to life in terms of walking here until a decade ago. The increased VIP movement, availability of a footpath on only one side of the road and parking of cars on both sides of the roads in the vicinity leave no space for pedestrians to walk in one of the swankiest areas of the city.”
Abhijit Bangar, additional municipal commissioner. FILE PIC/ASHISH RAJE
Another resident, on the condition of anonymity, pointed out that the authorities widen the roads at unnecessary locations instead of finding solutions where necessary, adding, “After completion of the Coastal Road, the size of the promenade has been increased, which has reduced almost two lanes of the road. What was the need to do that? On the other hand, in areas that are residential and where such problems need to be addressed, the officials start waking up only after such incidents happen. I hope it will bring some sense of responsibility among the authorities concerned, and her loss won’t go in vain.”
Rishi Aggarwal, founder of the Walking Project, stated, “That particular spot on Ridge Road is the narrowest. Basically, a car was parked on the road and the woman was walking right on the carriageway; even the BEST driver cannot be blamed in this situation. At least on the narrowest spot, there should be no parking allowed. The Mumbai Traffic Police is to be blamed for this.”
BMC’s response
Reacting to the accident, Additional Municipal Commissioner Abhijit Bangar said, “The roads there are narrow. So, the possibility of widening or constructing footpaths needs to be explored. When it comes to parking or halting of vehicles, including police vans, media vehicles, and VIP convoys, neither halting nor parking is allowed, and, thus, implementation of these rules needs to be improved. In terms of providing space nearby for parking, considering that there is daily VIP movement in the area, that seems difficult, but can surely be explored.”
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