Mumbai: Aarey main road plagued by potholes, lack of dividers, and wildlife hazards

Potholes on main Aarey road. Pics/Anurag Ahire

Both the concreted and non-concreted parts of the Aarey main road have their own reasons for causing problems to commuters, traffic police, wildlife, and bus drivers. The concreted section has diversions and crossroads of three different heights meeting each other, while the non-concreted section lacks dividers, causing vehicles to crash into each other after entering the wrong lane, as claimed by the traffic police. The locals have additional concerns.

"For how long are they going to fill potholes with mud and leftover tar that gets washed away the next day? Last month, someone died after hitting the bottom of a pothole near Picnic Garden. Every bump of the pothole hurts my back while driving the rickshaw, which is why I wear a brace," said Raju Patil, a rickshaw driver.

Under the BMC, the non-concreted road from the VIP guest house to Chotta Kashmir boating club spans 2.4 kilometres, while the concreted road after that is 2 kilometres long. The entire stretch is awaiting concreting, but Primal Kannan, a resident, asks, "How can it start when there is constant pipe work happening on the side?"

While it is known that culverts on this road are being designed to allow safe crossing for wild animals, reptiles, and other creatures, Santosh, a resident, calls for it to happen soon, claiming to have witnessed peacocks die. "The potholes have made buses very unpredictable. Due to this, I had to buy a moped with a loan as I kept getting late to work. Out of my monthly salary of Rs 25,000, Rs 3,500 goes towards the EMI, and Rs 1,500 on fuel," added Santosh, who preferred not to provide his full name.

A traffic police officer told midday that the absence of a divider on the last 200 metres of the concrete road causes vehicles to enter from the wrong way, leading to accidents. A BEST bus driver who preferred to remain anonymous. "We understand the importance of time for bus travellers, but due to the potholes and traffic, they always get delayed, and we have to face their abuses. Sometimes, I don't feel like coming to work," the driver said.

"From time to time, we use temporary measures to fix the potholes and unevenness of the diversion on the main road, which is yet to be made of concrete. This situation has arisen due to the road not being concreted yet, but the concreting process is planned and underway. Whenever we have a dry spell, we will promptly repair the road. Note that the work is in progress and has not been halted due to any pipe installation," said BMC official.