This monsoon, between May 26 and August 18, the subway has been closed 24 times due to flooding. Over the last weekend, after the India Meteorological Department issued a red alert for Mumbai on Friday morning, the subway was shut once, on August 16
Andheri Subway was shut for traffic on Monday. Pic/DHIRAJ BHOIR
Submerged under nearly five feet of rainwater, the Andheri Subway in the western suburbs was shut for traffic at 9.40 am on Monday by the Mumbai Traffic Police. By 5 pm, it was still closed. During this period, the K West ward Disaster Management Control Room recorded 195.1 mm of rainfall in the Andheri area.
This monsoon, between May 26 and August 18, the subway has been closed 24 times due to flooding. Over the last weekend, after the India Meteorological Department issued a red alert for Mumbai on Friday morning, the subway was shut once, on August 16, an official confirmed to mid-day on Monday afternoon.
Forced detour
The Andheri Subway is a vital east–west connector but also one of the city’s most notorious flooding hotspots. With water levels rising, the traffic police diverted vehicles via the Gokhale Bridge, adding a 1.5 km detour, and the Balasaheb Thackeray Flyover, which added roughly 3 km. These repeated diversions, combined with closures, lead to traffic snarls along SV Road and the Western Express Highway, especially in Andheri and Jogeshwari.
Why does the subway flood?
According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Andheri Subway is prone to flooding because it lies in a low-lying catchment area of the Mogra nullah. Rainwater flows rapidly into the subway due to the area’s gradient. At one point, the nullah makes a sharp 90-degree turn, slowing down the flow during heavy rain.
Additionally, the stormwater drains below the subway already carry a high “dry weather flow”, the amount of water flowing during the non-monsoon period, equivalent to about 15-20 mm of rainfall. This means that even during moderate showers of around 40 mm, the drains are overloaded, resulting in flooding of the subway.
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