Every pedestrian is entitled to high-quality footpaths

The under-construction Road No. 12 at Shri Krishna Nagar in Borivli East, where the height of the footpath and that of the road surface are the same. Pic/Satej Shinde

In our front-page report on Monday, pedestrians slammed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) as footpaths in the suburbs have been rendered virtually indistinguishable from roads, due to ongoing concreting work that has radically raised the height of street surfaces.

mid-day visited several spots in the Western suburbs, where residents bemoaned the absence of discernible pavements, which they claimed posed a significant risk to their safety.

The main concern is that roads and footpaths are at the same height, so vehicles will drive on both, creating a hazard for those who need a pavement to walk on.

While the BMC did give an explanation, it is time that authorities give our people decent footpaths to walk on, not only on main roads but several internal ones, too.
People will literally be squeezed to the sides on roads with non-existent pavements due to parked vehicles. We do not need this myopic work, because people are suffering enough. Our pavements seem compromised in a number of places. They are either encroached by unauthorised shop extensions, hawkers or something or the other. This means wares are sold on pavements and people are walking on the roads, sometimes, inches away from cars.

Then, we have not even come to two-wheelers climbing on to pavements or being ridden on the wrong side, posing huge risks to those walking on the pavements. Footpaths are for heels, not wheels.

Then, we come to broken pavements, with cavities in so many spaces for some reason or another. This may result in serious injuries due to falls, even broken limbs, as has happened at times. Pedestrians now surely do not need other problem, where equal levels spell more trouble and trauma.