Elphinstone bridge closure deferred again, indefinitely; MMRDA keeps it open for now amid public pushback and confusion
Banners announcing road closure and suggesting alternative routes have been put up, even though the Elphinstone bridge remains open. Pic/Ashish Raje
Giving some respite to residents and commuters using the Elphinstone bridge, the MMRDA has announced that the bridge will remain functional until further notice, although boards have been put up urging people to start using alternative routes.
“We are waiting to get an NOC from the police and traffic department. But, as of now, the bridge is open to the public,” said Sanjay Mukherjee, metropolitan commissioner, MMRDA. The closure was originally scheduled for April 10 and was later postponed to April 15. “We and MMRDA had invited suggestions, objections, and feedback regarding the closure to be submitted by April 13. We have received a few recommendations, so we are reconsidering the closure dates,” said Anil Kumbhare, joint commissioner (traffic).
Worli MLA Aaditya Thackeray had also written to the department on April 9, requesting a further delay. He highlighted that closing the Elphinstone bridge before the completion of work on Ganpatrao Kadam Marg would cause major inconvenience, especially to patients and families heading to KEM and Wadia Hospitals. The closure would force them to take a nearly 4 km detour via Tilak bridge or Currey Road.
mid-day had also reported how a key foot overbridge connecting Central and Western Railway remains incomplete. Meanwhile, the traffic department has already put up banners on Gokhale Road advising commuters to avoid the Elphinstone bridge and instead use Tilak bridge for Wadala, Dadar, and Chembur. This has led to confusion among motorists.
“Why have the traffic police and MMRDA put up these banners when the bridge isn’t shut yet? It’s causing unnecessary confusion and forcing people to take long detours, wasting time, fuel, and money,” said Munaf Thakur, a Lower Parel resident who frequently uses the bridge. Once the Elphinstone bridge is closed, traffic will be diverted to other routes, primarily the Tilak and Currey Road bridges—both already battling heavy congestion.
“The board was put up almost 5-6 days ago, so I started using the Tilak bridge to go to my office at Currey Road. It was only yesterday that a friend told me the Elphinstone bridge is still open. For all these days, I unnecessarily spent 30 extra minutes stuck in heavy traffic, because everyone probably assumed the bridge was shut. The prolonged closure itself is going to cause problems, and on top of that, if misleading signages are put up, it only adds to our woes,” said Siddhesh Pathre, a commuter.
“The entire city is already dug up. I travel on my two-wheeler from Prabhadevi to Fort, and this bridge is the most convenient route. But I began using alternate roads after the authorities announced the closure. Now they’re saying the bridge is still open, but the signage hasn’t been removed. Are we expected to check every day if the bridge is functional? Shutting this bridge for as long as 20 months will cause a major inconvenience and increase my travel time by at least 40 minutes, considering Mumbai’s traffic on diverted routes,” said Mahesh Shirkar, another commuter.
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