Mumbai: FOB razing causes 3-hour traffic jam in Girgaon

The road along Charni Road station was blocked to ensure safety during the FOZ razing. Pic/Bipin Kokate

South Mumbai residents on Wednesday faced an unusual traffic congestion during the morning peak hours as the road along Charni Road station was blocked both ways for razing the Foot Over Bridge (FOB) connecting the station to Girgaon. Students were among the worst affected as they waited for their school buses.

Officials on site told mid-day that the FOB was in a dilapidated condition and was hence being razed. "Work began at 1.30 am late Tuesday night with the roads kept blocked for safety reasons," said a police official.

Vehicular traffic heading from Grant Road to Churchgate was diverted through the Jagannath Shankar Seth (JSS) Road which is already narrowed due to the ongoing Metro work. Vehicles heading from Marine Lines to Grant Road were diverted through Thakurdwar Road, resulting in traffic bottlenecks for nearly three hours between 6 am and 9 am at the Thakurdwar junction, with traffic wardens trying to manage the situation.

"Usually school buses arrive at 8:10 am. But it is already 8:30 am and the school bus is yet to arrive," said a parent waiting at the Thakurdwar junction with his daughter. The soaring mercury levels made it worse for the young ones.

Local residents and shop owners said that the area usually did not face traffic snarls. "It generally takes me only two minutes to reach Charni Road station. But it will now take me a good 20-25 minutes due to the diversion," local businessman Kushal Jain said.

Office goers were seen alighting cabs to walk to work instead. Kalbadevi traffic division's Dhanraj Rathod said that the situation persisted till around 11 am after which "smooth traffic flow resumed."

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