Kurla bus crash: Narrow road cluttered with debris and illegal parking left little space to escape

Debris dumped on side of road. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

The road stretch of SG Barve Marg where the accident occurred has been narrowed down due to debris dumped and illegal parking on one side of the road. Work on the redevelopment of buildings along with widening of the road along the stretch has been going on after setbacks from the nearby buildings.

"Yes, several clusters of small houses and shops have been amalgamated and are being redeveloped into buildings, and the setback received from buildings is leading to the widening of the road, but there is too much debris and illegal vehicles lying there," a local resident said.

"It has been over 40 years now that I have lived in this area, and the road has been narrow, littered with hawkers, slums, and illegal parkings. The vehicles have become bigger, and the roads have become narrower. They talk of new technology and development. Where are the MPs, MLAs, and elected representatives?" Ashraf Sayed said.

"If it had been a wider road, there would have been space for pedestrians to get away from the approaching bus," Praful Mhatre, another local, said. "The priority is now to save lives and look well after the victims. The roads will be improved. There is also a plan to have a SATIS scheme," Kurla MLA Mangesh Kudalkar said. The Station Area Traffic Improvement Scheme (SATIS) is a World Bank-funded project that aims to improve traffic and pedestrian movement around railway stations in MMR.