The death of a 75-year-old woman on Tuesday morning at Malabar Hill, after a Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus crashed into a parked car near the Sahyadri Guest House, has once again drawn attention to Mumbai’s deteriorating pedestrian infrastructure.

While residents have expressed grief and anger over the incident, Niranjan Hiranandani, chairman of the National Real Estate Development Council and a close friend of the deceased, Neeta Shaha, has stated, “This is not just about my friend. This is about every pedestrian who is forced to risk their life just to walk. We’ve made progress in building skyscrapers, but we’ve failed to ensure safe walking spaces for our seniors and children. I appeal to the BMC to take immediate measures: ensure continuity of footpaths, remove illegal encroachments, and declare vulnerable zones as no-parking areas.”

The incident