Mumbai: This one’s on traffic cops, readers on illegal parking on footpaths

Following middayrsquos detailed report highlighting the menace of illegal parking of vehicles on footpaths in Mumbai many citizens wrote to this newspaper to share their experiences dealing with the issue and appeal to the authorities to wake up and act in the interest of pedestriansOn Thursday midday reporters after visiting visited locations in the Eastern and Western suburbs as well as South Mumbai revealed how senior citizens and schoolgoing children among other pedestrians were being deprived of walking spaces leaving them with no choice but to risk their lives by treading on the roadReacting to the piece a reader Sudhir Kangutkar wrote ldquoMost footpaths in Maharashtra have disappeared Unauthorised hawkers have come to dominate pavements By now we have forgotten that footpaths are meant for pedestrians They are necessary to ensure accidents are avoided Municipalities must keep footpaths open for pedestriansrdquoVendors occupy the lionrsquos share of footpaths at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai on Thursday PicsPrasun ChoudhariAnother reader Iqbal Gilani Mansuri blamed careless citizens and the authorities for contributing to the menace ldquoSeized bikes and cars are always parked by the police on the footpath near police stations and they need to be removed The police need to tow vehicles illegally parked on footpaths and penalise their ownersrdquo he saidSocial media usersrsquo reactionAn X user Walking Project posted ldquoOne would think with the R86000 crore sitting in the mybmcs fixed deposits some could be spent on hiring a massive force to curb footpath parking while simultaneously creating employment ThoughtsrdquoKalpana Sharma an independent journalist author and columnist posted on the microblogging site ldquoAnother sad example of the state of our cities No place for people to walk Fossil burning vehicles take over roads and pavements making the air unbreathable Thanks mid_day for taking this up Lets see if it puts any pressure on mybmc that seems in deep slumber sicrdquo Kumar Manish a content curator and creator posted ldquoAhmedabad is no different People park on footpath whatever little we have in city and will complain why pedestrians walk on road and jaywalkrdquoOne X handle Craters of Mumbai even appealed the Mumbai Traffic Police to act ldquoMTPHereToHelp donrsquot ask for exact location The news article specifically lists locations ACT NOWrdquo the post read A Mulund resident using emojis posted ldquoTraffic police is openly ignoring this complaint since many months and not towing away parked on footpath behind the stop sign Since Diwali While all pvt Cars R towed from this area 1km both end MTPHereToHelp mybmcWardT mulund_info MulundOpinion BhaktiMargVoice sicrdquoOne userrsquos sarcastic post read ldquoYes footpaths all over Matunga East are meant for parking If you walk on the footpath the RTO will take a penalty Isnt it correct MTPHereToHelprdquomidday revisits spotsWhen midday revisited Azad Maidan on Thursday more towed vehicles that were brought to the traffic division were parked on the footpath It was also observed that the footpath along MG Road from the Azad Maidan traffic division to the Central Telegraph Office and further south towards the Bombay High Court was encroached by makeshift shops and roadside vendors Pedestrians were seen walking on the road to avoid these shopsThe shop outside Churchgate station where cigarettes were being sold surreptitiouslyMeanwhile at the Churchgate station subway makeshift shops were still standing Police officers were seen chatting with the owners of the shops and roadside vendors instead of taking action against them One such vendor was seen selling cigarettes illegally using the cover of biscuits and other eatables Twowheelers belonging to shop owners were also seen parked on the footpath making it difficult for pedestrians to navigate