BEST bus collides with pvt bus below Metro 4 site in Mulund

In breach of protocol, no traffic warden was posted on site to alert motorists about the traffic diversion, first responders told Hindustan Times

Mumbai: A Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus collided head-on with a private bus in Mulund West early in the morning on Sunday, resulting in minor injuries to the BEST bus driver. The accident occurred on the Thane-bound lane of Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Road while traffic restrictions were in place to facilitate construction work on the Metro 4 corridor, and no traffic warden was posted on site to alert motorists about the restrictions, first responders in the incident told Hindustan Times.

Around 5.50am on Sunday, a BEST bus proceeding from SEEPZ to Teen Hath Naka in Thane collided head-on with a private bus at Ralli Wolf (Satish Bate/Hindustan Times)

This was the year’s sixth accident at a Metro 4 construction site, and the fifth accident involving Mateswari Urban Transport Solutions, the wet lease operator which was running the BEST bus involved in the accident.

Late on Saturday night, Sion-bound road lanes of LBS Road in Mulund West were closed to traffic and all vehicles were diverted to Thane-bound lanes to facilitate construction work on the Metro 4 corridor, connecting Wadala with Kasarvadavali via Ghatkopar and Thane. While traffic movement was largely normal through the night, around 5.50am on Sunday, a BEST bus proceeding from SEEPZ to Teen Hath Naka in Thane collided head-on with a private bus at Ralli Wolf.

“The BEST bus driver sustained a blunt injury to his abdomen caused by the steering wheel. He was also injured on his right leg,” a BEST spokesperson said.

The injured bus driver Sandeep Karande, 40, was taken to Agarwal Hospital for treatment and his condition was stable, the BEST spokesperson said. The driver was discharged from the hospital later in the day.

The Mulund police station subsequently made a station diary entry against the driver of the private bus involved in the accident.

One of the first responders said the private bus had just emerged on LBS Road from one of the lanes when it collided with the BEST bus.

“The private bus should have stuck to the left-most lane, since the road was designated as two-way. But it was plying along the middle of the road, probably because the driver was unaware of the traffic diversion, leading to the accident,” the person said.

As per protocol, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is supposed to deploy traffic wardens on ground through its appointed contractors when such traffic diversions are implemented. But on Sunday morning, no traffic wardens were present at the spot when the incident occurred, the person quoted earlier said.

“Traffic wardens are rarely found regulating traffic when such diversions are implemented, leaving the scope for accidents wide open,” he added.

When contacted, an MMRDA official dismissed the breach in protocol, and said that the accident involved two buses and neither the MMRDA nor the metro construction work were among the causes.