Potholes make traffic crawl on Vile Parle flyover

Potholes on the Captain Vinayak Gore Flyover in Vile Parle, Mumbai are causing traffic jams and doubling commute times for motorists in the area. The flyover is being used as an alternative route due to the closure of the Andheri Subway, which frequently shuts down due to waterlogging. Residents have complained about the lack of action from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in fixing the potholes on the flyover. Citizens also say that the narrow bridge and potholes make the situation worse.

Strap: With Andheri Subway frequently getting shut due to waterlogging, this is the only closest alternative route, say residents

Mumbai, India - July 27, 2023 : Potholes Seen in a Flyover at Vile Parle East, in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, July 27, 2023. (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo)

Potholes on the Captain Vinayak Gore Flyover, a vital east-west connector in Vile Parle, is causing a traffic jam which in turn doubles the commute time for motorists.

After the Gokhale bridge, a key Andheri east-west connector, has been shut since November last year, the two nearest alternative routes are Andheri Subway to its north and this flyover to its south.

Residents, however, said due to frequent waterlogging at the subway, the Vile Parle flyover remains the safest commute. Since June 24, the subway has been shut more than 10 times.

The Lokhandwala Oshiwara Citizen’s Association (LOCA), which took up the issue of potholes with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) a few days ago, said the civic body is yet to act on their complaint.

“In case of closure of the subway, load increases on the flyover. Heavy vehicles also ply on it in the morning when traffic police personnel are not present and damage the road surface,” Dhaval Shah, founder of LOCA, said.

On Wednesday, a school bus had to send the children back home after it failed to cross the subway since it had to be shut, he said. “If the bus had used the Vile Parle flyover, it would have taken very long.”

“We tweeted tagging the bridges department of BMC, the main BMC handle, the Western Railway, and even the commissioner, but there was no response,” Shah added.

Citizens also complained that the bridge is already narrow, and the potholes just add to the problem.

Karan Jotwani, an Oshiwara businessman who travels to Marol every day, said, “I have a site in Irla and hence I frequently take the Vile Parle flyover. There is a big pothole on the east side of the flyover, and you land straight into it when going from the west to east. This causes a traffic congestion. On the other hand, people are skeptical of using the subway because it gets shut frequently.”

Sweeta Choithramani, a resident of Andheri West, said, “I travel on a two-wheeler to my office in Sakinaka and during heavy rain, it is very difficult to identify a pothole on the flyover. So, when the subway is shut, taking the flyover is a nightmare. It was not this bad before the monsoon, but potholes have cropped up over the past one week.

What used to be a 40-minute commute had now become 80 minutes, said Adarsh Nagar resident Priyam Gangrade who takes the flyover to reach her workplace in Sakinaka.

“Whenever the subway is shut, the traffic is diverted to the Vile Parle flyover, and the potholes on the flyover cause a traffic jam,” Samrat Poddar from Lokhandwala said.

An official from BMC’s K east ward said the flyover is maintained by the bridges department. “We will inform the officials concerned to have the potholes filled on priority.”

Additional commissioner (projects) P Velrasu did not respond to HT’s request for a comment.