By Anushka Vats,News18
Copyright news18
The plan of demolition of the Goregaon flyover has been halted by the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) after facing public opposition and criticism. The plan to demolish the Veer Savarkar flyover extension (also called the MTNL flyover) was because it was blocking the construction of the connector between the Coastal Road’s northern stretch and the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR).
“The MTNL flyover is an extremely crucial connector in the heart of the western suburbs. It is a westward extension of the Veer Savarkar flyover, going over the railway tracks connecting east to west, which is a great help for commuters looking to bypass the busy S V Road. Because it lands at the border of Goregaon and Malad, both sides use it, as well as those coming from further like Marve, Madh, Aksa, and even Charkop,” Deepak Thakur, the area’s corporator at the time the flyover was inaugurated, was quoted as saying by the Hindustan Times.
Thakur was among the first few people to oppose the demolition. His objection was in view of the worry among local residents, who feared that removing the bridge would worsen traffic problems.
Thakur and Vidya Thakur (the local MLA) met BMC officials to discuss these concerns recently, where they were assured that the officials would consider alternative solutions to complete the road project without having to demolish the existing flyover.
“The officials assured us that other options would be explored, which would not require the bridge to be demolished,” Vidya was quoted as saying.
Speaking about the same, Abhijeet Bangar, the additional municipal commissioner (Bridges), said, “Taking into account the objections from local representatives and residents, we are looking at alternatives. The question we are facing, since the alignment of the MTNL bridge and Coastal Road-GMLR connector is parallel, is whether the double-decker bridge will rest on a single pier or separate piers. Previously, the option of the bridge on a single pier seemed most rational, but we are not limiting ourselves and are resurveying the area through our consultant.”
