Hump opp Dadar flower market causing accidents

Locals have complained about the issue to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on several occasions, but the civic body has failed corrective action despite assurances to the contrary

Mumbai: A speed breaker opposite the flower market in Dadar west, which was erected in January 2022, has caused multiple accidents as there are not enough signages or lights to warn motorists. Locals have complained about the issue to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on several occasions, but the civic body has failed corrective action despite assurances to the contrary.

Mumbai, India - Feb. 10, 2024: Unsafe speed breaker opp Dadar Flyover market on Senapati Bapat Marg has led to accidents. Activist Chetan Kamble, showing the spot who has written to authorities multiple times to fix it, in Mumbai, India, on Saturday, February 10, 2024. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

“I have personally witnessed at least 8-10 accidents at the spot,” said activist Chetan Kamble. The speed breaker is located on the northbound as well as southbound lane of Senapati Bapat Marg, just a little ahead of the end of the flyover, but it is neither painted, nor lit up, he noted.

“Most accidents occur at night, as motorists speed down the flyover and realise rather too late that there is a speed breaker in front of them. They either lose control or are hit by a speeding vehicle from behind when they manage to apply the brake,” said Kamble, who has posted photos and videos of accidents on social media to draw the attention of officials.

“I have written multiple letters to the BMC and even called up ward engineers, asking them to address the issue, but the matter has not been taken up seriously,” he said.

Sayyed Mubarak Shaikh, a flower vendor who has seen several accidents at the spot, said the speed breaker was installed due to heavy footfall at the flower market. “This is a main road and vehicles move quickly, but the speed breaker is not demarcated with paint, causing accidents. I witness small accidents almost every day and major ones, sometimes,” he said.

Following complaints from Kamble and other locals, the speed breaker was painted over a few weeks ago, but no signages, rumblers or lights were installed to alert motorists. “Even the paint is fading away, making it impossible to motorists to see the speed breaker from afar,” said Kamble, showing pictures and videos of an accident on January 27, when a car rammed into another one which had braked suddenly after spotting the speed breaker.

Dhawal Ashar, programme head, urban transport and road safety at the non-profit World Resources Institute, India said the BMC needs to have a robust monitoring mechanism to ensure that all speed breakers are in proper condition. “Speed calming measures such as humps need to be properly maintained or else they can be a safety risk especially to vulnerable road users. The technical specifications are clear. We need to develop a robust monitoring mechanism,” he said.

Ashar said that the BMC needs to collect information about speed breakers and other speed calming measures through multiple channels. “These include crowdsourcing through the BMC app, the website and social media accounts; regular audits of speed calming infrastructure; and traffic police reporting,” he said.

HT reached out to P Velrasu, additional commissioner (projects) and Prashant Sapkale, assistant commissioner, G north ward for comments, but neither responded to the queries.