Officials promise to construct landing staircases, making footpaths fully functional, by December
The site of a staircase that leads to a pedestrian pathway of Sindoor bridge. PIC/BY special arrangement
Months after the much-publicised inauguration of the Sindoor bridge, which replaced the colonial-era Carnac bridge, the structure’s pedestrian pathways are finally seeing progress. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has also begun work on the long-pending landing staircases that connect the elevated pathways to the ground, paving the way for their long-awaited opening. The work on the pedestrian pathway on another newly inaugurated bridge, in Vikhroli, is, however, yet to begin.
When mid-day visited the site of Sindoor bridge, at Masjid Bunder, on Monday, the foundations for the staircases were visible for the first time, with officials promising that work would be completed by December 2025.
For months, pedestrians were forced to walk along the busy vehicular lanes of the bridge, risking their lives daily, as access to the footpaths was blocked due to the absence of connecting staircases. Despite repeated complaints and follow-ups, pedestrian facilities remained unusable even after the bridge’s inauguration, drawing public criticism.
The Sindoor bridge — officially spanning 328 metres — includes a 70-metre-long steel open-web girder section that crosses over the Central Railway tracks. The structure, 9.5 metres wide and designed to accommodate four lanes of traffic, was reconstructed after its predecessor was demolished for safety reasons. It was inaugurated on July 10 this year.
Officials from the BMC’s bridges department confirmed that the landing structures, once complete, would finally make the pedestrian pathways functional. “The foundation work is now in place, and the remaining civil and finishing work will be completed in the next few months. We expect the pedestrian access to be open to the public by the end of 2025,” said an official.
The move comes after mid-day had earlier highlighted the plight of pedestrians, who were left with no option but to share space with speeding vehicles due to incomplete infrastructure.
Voices
With the staircases finally taking shape, citizens and urban transport activists have welcomed the development, but expressed wariness about further delays. “It’s encouraging that work has finally begun, but this should have been done before the inauguration. Pedestrian safety must never be an afterthought,” said Rishikesh Satve, a commuter.
A passenger association member, Subhash Gupta, said, “Once operational, the pathways will offer a safer, dedicated corridor for pedestrians crossing one of South Mumbai’s key east–west links, connecting P D’Mello Road to the city’s inner business districts.”
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