Bandra residents say ‘no’ to guard rails on footpaths

MUMBAI: The irony is hard to miss. While municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani admitted to a low walkability quotient in Mumbai’s suburbs on Friday, pointing to poor and missing footpaths, Bandra residents were fiercely defending their pavements from being ‘invaded’ by the municipality.

On Friday, residents attempted to stop the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) from erecting guard rails on the edges of footpaths along Perry Road, a suburban arterial road that connects S V Road to Carter Road.

Erecting four-foot-high guard rails along the narrow pavement would restrict access to it and create a sense of claustrophobia, they pointed out. Since the railings would keep pedestrians hemmed in, the railings would also make the footpath unsafe for citizens, especially women. Their reasoning is in sync with the Indian Roads Congress (IRC) guidelines for pedestrian facilities.

“On Friday, the BMC started work on replacing the existing railings along one stretch, near the D’Monte Park, saying they were rusty. Then they started digging holes for new railings to be installed. We asked them to stop,” said Bandra resident and activist Natasha Pereira.

When the civic engineers on site told her to write to the BMC, Pereira did just that on Friday. In her letter to the assistant commissioner, H West ward, Dinesh Pallewad, and the civic gardens department, Pereira said, “The unnecessary railings will block access for pedestrians and further narrow the footpath. Moreover, the old railings did not need to be replaced, a waste of tax payers’ money. Besides, the residents had not been informed of this project.”

After she posted her letter on social media platform X, Pereira found support from several other residents. They pointed out that in the event of an attack, the railings would create a barrier to escape. Women would be most impacted. Pereira had a marvellous suggestion for the holes that had already been dug – grow plants in them.

Bolstering the residents’ case are the IRC’s rules, which state that “Continuous guard rails on footpaths without frequent opportunities to enter and exit makes pedestrians feel trapped inside, and they begin to walk on carriageway. (…) They should be only used where there is evidence that pedestrian safety can only be achieved by providing guard rails. Pedestrian guard rails may not be required in most cases if sufficient walking space, and frequent and safe crossings are available,” it says. According to these guidelines, guard rails should be 0.7 to 0.9m high, or not more than 3 feet high, and a gap provided every 20m for emergency exits.

The Bandra residents were eventually assured that the railings would not be erected but, when they returned to the spot on Saturday, the work had resumed. “We tried to stop the work again, but the engineers told us they had orders from above to carry on with it,” said Pereira. “Some of the railings along the footpath have been installed.”

Asked to comment on the residents’ effort, assistant commissioner, H West ward, Dinesh Pallewad told HT, “One arm of the Bandra-Versova Sealink is landing near Otters Club towards Perry Road, and is expected to significantly increase vehicular traffic. To enhance pedestrian safety, the Executive Engineer (Traffic) recommended installation of railings along Perry Road. The Traffic and Planning Department is currently undertaking the installation work. Designated openings have been provided in the railings at appropriate locations for safe pedestrian crossings.”

Without realising he was only exacerbating the issue raised by concerned citizens, another official from H West ward said the BMC is installing these guard rails all across the city.