There's space for everyone on Mumbai's footpaths, except pedestrians

Mumbaikars fought BMCs ambitious hawking and parking policies tooth and nail to ensure that their lives are not adversely affected but their vote seems to have been mistaken as one for the status quoNow with both the policies on the backburner and the citys footpaths overtaken by everyone except the people they were meant for the pedestrians arguably the most neglected section of citizens will have to resign themselves once again to dodging traffic on the roads this monsoonThe culpritsAround 5 lakh vehicles have been added to the city in the past three years burdening the citys footpaths as much as the roads as the vehicles are seen parked on the footpaths while people are forced to walk on the road Some of the reasons for vehicles being parked on the roads in the city are the lack of adequate free and payandpark facilities the fact that several buildings lack parking slots and that many residents cannot afford slots in the ones that doAlso Read Cops want BMC to reduce footpath width at Parel TTThe low frequency of buses and the increased bus and rickshaw fares have also forced many citizens to take their twowheelers to the railway stations and park them there before embarking on the second leg of the commute They end up parking the twowheelers on the footpath because there are no parking lots outside most stationsJust businessNew and secondhand vehicle sellers also clog up the cityrsquos footpaths by parking the vehicles in the area in front of their shops Hawkers are the other notable culprits as are contractors and construction crews many of whom have delayed the relaying of footpaths ensuring that theyll remain incomplete before the monsoon hits midday visited some of the locations in the city where the footpaths are dying a slow death despite the BMC spending crores on their lsquoupkeeprsquoWestern SuburbsIn most of the places we visited in the western suburbs we found that the footpaths were occupied not by the vehicles of residents of societies in the area but by used car dealers Large patches of the footpath on the arterial New Link Road between Goregaon and Malad for instance are being used for this purposePicsSatyajit DesaiAuto Alliance Somvar Bazaar Road MaladAround 12 cars were parked on the road and more than 10 were parked on the footpath occupying more than 20 feet of it We saw pedestrians including schoolgoing children and the elderly being forced to walk on the road No one from the car dealership was willing to speak on the issueAlso Read Footpaths outside 10 busy Mumbai railway stations to get a makeoverOpposite Oshiwara Depot New Link RoadA secondhand bike dealer has blocked the footpath by parking at least 10 of his vehicles there The area adjacent to the footpath on the northbound stretch also has illegal parking Thus not only do pedestrians have to risk their lives by walking on the busy road their movement also hinders traffic A traffic policeman was standing barely 200 metres away from the spot but he seemed to turn a blind eye to the illegal parkingOpposite Rekhatai P Mhatre Junior College of Science OshiwaraWhile one side of the road has a footpath which is unobstructed the footpath on the other side had been demolished a year ago while some work was on and was not reconstructed The area meant for the footpath has now been taken over for parking Around eight to ten cars were parked in the space meant for pedestriansReliable Carz New Link Road GoregaonA car dealer has used a portion of footpath on the southbound stretch to park his vehicles More than ten cars were parked on the road and close to the same number were parked on the footpath Locals say that the vehicles that are parked on the road illegally are sometimes towed but they reappear soon enoughElite Motors MaladWhen midday visited the spot we found that more than 30 feet of the footpath was being used to park fourwheelers More than 10 vehicles were parked in such a way that even spotting the footpath underneath was a taskSince there is no parking space available and the width of the footpath is more we sometimes park cars on it If the traffic department and BMC ask us not to park the vehicles there we will obey their orders Rizwan Khan works with Reliable CarzFootpaths are made so that pedestrians can have a safe and hasslefree walk but it is sad to see that the authorities have failed to keep a check on the illegal parking that takes place there I understand that there is a space crunch and people dont have enough places to park but that does not mean that they can take over the footpaths Used car dealers on the Link Road near Bangur Nagar in Goregaon West are some of the biggest culprits D Bhatia local resident5 lakhThe number of vehicles that have been added to the cityrsquos roads in the past three yearsEastern suburbsmidday visited several locations in Ghatkopar Bhandup Vikhroli and Mulund and found twowheelers and fourwheelers parked on long stretches of the footpath with the remaining space taken over by vegetable and fruit vendors and other hawkersCGS road close to Ghatkopar stationA huge stretch of the footpath has been converted into a makeshift furniture mall The vendors have been selling furniture in the area for more than 30 years and claim that the BMC officials take bribes from themAlso Read BMC employees testing concretestamp on footpathsPicSameer MarkandeI have been doing business in the area for 3035 years We are originally from Osmanabad The police never ask for a bribe but we are expected to give chaipaani The BMC workers charge Rs 10002000 whenever there is a raid Sometimes the raids are held in quick succession and sometimes there is a gap between two raids Achyut Bodhare furniture sellerThe BMC workers take at least Rs 5000 from us for not confiscating our goods Samina Shaikh another sellerPicsBipin KokateLBS Marg near Cipla Vikhroli WestSeveral auto rickshaws were found parked on the footpathWe park our vehicles here every day especially overnight as the footpath and roads are wide No action is taken against us as we pay local police officials for parking our vehicles An auto driverLBS Marg MulundThe area close to the Vasant Oscar residential complex in Mulund near Nirmal Lifestyle sees rampant illegal parking When midday visited the spot we saw that twowheelers belonging to commercial outlets such as Dominos Pizza were parked on the footpath along with other twowheelers The outlet is just at the entrance of the residential complex A few private two wheelers were also parked on the footpathAlso Read Hawkers on footpaths leave no space for MG Road pedestriansAt times delivering the product in a rush makes some of our delivery boys park the bikes on the footpaths We have been fined for this by the BMC A Dominos officialSardar Pratap Singh Industrial Estate BhandupThe area is filled with smallscale industrial plants and mechanical shops Cars two wheelers and auto rickshaws are parked near and on the footpaths forcing people to walk on the roadOutside Ghatkopar stationThe road immediately outside Ghatkopar station on the western side is lined with hawkers on both sides Some people have also set up shop under the Metro bridge We are never questioned by the BMC I have a licence but we fear the Metro authorities will make us relocate Ranjana Awhad shopkeeperSonapur junction near Nirmal LifestyleTrucks were parked on the footpath opposite plywood and steel shops forcing people to walk on the busy road and risk their livesTrucks and tempos have encroached the area outside our shops During the day only a few trucks are parked here At night however the entire stretch is taken over by taxis trucks and private buses Jitendra Shah paint shop ownerSurya Nagar Vikhroli WestWhen midday visited the spot we found that mini tempos and private vehicles had encroached on a significant chunk of the footpath on LBS MargThe tempos are parked here the whole day and no one takes action against them More vehicles are parked when it gets dark The footpath outside our complex is taken over by auto rickshaws and private commercial vehicles Bhikaji Satle security guard at a residential complexIsland cityDadar is one of the busiest areas in the city and the area around the station sees very heavy footfalls Both the eastern and western side of the station are chocabloc with vendors and food stall owners The footpaths right outside the station are in a terrible state and illegal parking on the arterial roads is rampantNaigaon Road Dadar WestFour to five twowheelers were found parked on the footpath outside a private bank on the roadThese vehicles belong to the bank workers They park their vehicles here and go to work nearby They know it is illegal Issaq Shaikh owns a shop nearbyDadar EastA similar situation was seen outside the station at Dadar East where 810 two wheelers were found parked on a 500metre stretch of the footpath When he was asked why the BMC does not clear up the footpath a shopkeeper said ldquopaisa feko tamasha dekhordquoThese vehicles belong neither to us nor to the residents of these buildings They belong to people who park here before heading to the station Rajesh Jain shopkeeperI walk from Dadar station every day and I wonder where the footpaths in this area are I fear Ill be hit by a moving vehicle some day because I am forced to walk on the road Shraddha Pandey commuterI travel from Dadar to Kurla every day These hawkers come back just a few days after the BMC carries out a drive There is no end to the illegal parking problem either Sanjay Khandare commuterJehangir Boman Behram Marg near Mumbai Central stationSeveral domestic LPG cylinders from Bharat Gas were placed along the footpath close to the station A truck was parked on the road and about 20 cylinders were kept on the footpathWe use this space because we have no other option We dont have permission from the BMC and sometimes during raids we face problems But we use the footpath because our work only takes 3060 minutes As soon as we are done unloadingloading the cylinders are removed Swati Shenwai an attendant from Bharat GasOutside Hotel Arabia Jehangir Boman Behram MargA number of two wheelers most of them belonging to patrons of the restaurant are parked here throughout the dayPeople keep parking here because there is no parking lot near the restaurant The traffic police never check Kalba Hassan owns a paan stall nearbyOfficial speakMilind Bharambe Joint Commissioner of Police TrafficYes it is our responsibility But controlling parking on footpaths is challenging because there are several buildings in the city which donrsquot have a parking facility That has to be tackled Besides we have already started a drive on SV Road and Link Road in the North and Eastern parts of the city where some arterial roads have been taken over by garages or secondhand car dealers We will free up such roads for traffic and also remove the encroaching vehiclesJ K Kharat ACP Traffic western regionWe only crack down on vehicles parked on the road Footpaths are not under our jurisdiction and we cant remove the vehicles there since they are not an obstacle to moving traffic So primarily it is the BMCrsquos responsibility to clear footpathsJ B Patel deputy chief engineer BMCs traffic departmentActually it is the traffic policersquos responsibility to clear footpaths because pedestrians are also part of traffic It is not the BMCrsquos responsibility to tow vehicles We donrsquot have the resources to do so We had built ramps on footpaths to facilitate movement of the physically challenged but those are being misused by motorists What do we do thenPunjabrao Ugale DCP Traffic Eastern SuburbsWe will investigate the matter and take necessary stepsV N Jadhav Additional Commissioner TrafficPrimarily it is the BMCrsquos responsibility since illegal parking on footpaths does not hamper vehicular traffic But if they ask for our help we can help with towing Jadhav also extended support to middayrsquos campaign saying that the traffic police can crack down on illegal parking if a list of locations is shared with themAshok Pawar Chief engineer BMC Roads and Traffic deptThe BMC has no mechanism for towing away vehicles from footpaths or roads Therefore it is the traffic policersquos responsibility All we can do is put up bollards But if illegal parking takes place even then traffic police should take actionAdditional Municipal Commissioner SVR Srinivas was unavailable for commentHave a picture to share Tweet images of footpath encroachment to mid_day or send a mail to mailbagmiddaycom