Delhi has over 90 foot overbridges & 40 subways, but several such facilities are lying unused as they are either dirty & encroached by drunkards or poorly lit, forcing pedestrians to cross roads with chances of accidents, finds Gayathri Mani
Sheetal, 26, was climbing the staircases of a long foot overbridge (FOB) at the Shakarpur Police Station near Geeta Colony to catch a bus from the other side of the road on Sunday evening. Once she started walking on the secluded FOB, she spotted a group of men standing there whose body language looked suspicious. Sensing the risk, she quickly walked down and decided to cross the bustling road despite knowing the fact that it could be dangerous.
“I am new to this place. I got scared after seeing those men standing there, as there were no other pedestrians on the FOB. I thought they could be phone or chain snatchers.”Like Sheetal, most pedestrians in the national capital, which currently has about 90 FOBs and 40 subways (according to the Delhi Socio-economic survey), try to avoid using the passages since they are, generally, dirty, stained with tobacco spit and populated by drunkards and beggars. And they are forced to cross busy roads with chances of fatal accidents always on the higher side.
However, construction of 22 more FOBs are in progress and many were set to be completed by the end of 2020, but deadlines have been extended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2018-19, the Delhi government’s planning department had carried out an evaluation study on 74 FOBs and 38 subways in the city to get the feedback on utilisation pattern and to take remedial measures to eradicate bottlenecks for improving utilisation of the pedestrian passages. The survey, expectedly, showed that the highest percentage of pedestrians don’t use them due to lack of safety, cleanliness, availability of lifts, escalators, ramps, lights and fear of anti-elements such as pick-pockets, thieves, snatchers and drug addicts. Later in 2019,
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia instructed the PWD to conduct a technical and scientific study of these crossings to find out how these facilities could be improved to attract more pedestrians. Almost two years down the lines since the order, The Morning Standard visited multiple locations across the city to find out the ground reality. This reporter visited Sreeniwaspuri, INA, Gandhi Nagar, Yamuna Vihar, Gokulpuri, Shalimar Bagh, Wazirpur Industrial Area, Sarai Kale Khan, Okhla NSIC, Shastri Park, Shalimar Bagh, Geeta Colony, Sarojini Nagar, Lajpat Nagar, Andrews Ganj, Kashmere Gate, Nigam Bodh Ghat, Asaf Ali Road, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Bhikaji Cama Place, Munirka, Safdurjung, AIIMS, ITO, Connaught Place, Scindia House, Nizamuddin, many others and found that a large number of FOBs and subways constructed by the PWD are still in a dilapidated condition, with broken roofs and tiles, too many staircases, lack of ramps, lifts, escalators and the nauseating stench of urine. For women users, poorly lit pedestrian bridges become a nightmare after sundown.
At a subway near Nigambodh Ghat, this newspaper found several drug addicts occupied the passage, while motorists — scooties and bikes — were using it to avoid traffic jams. At Sreeniwaspuri, the subway was dark, with water dripping from broken walls. A security guard posted at the subway said: “It is a busy road. So, around 100-200 pedestrians use the facility every day. But women and the elderly try to avoid it. The subway was recently renovated but thieves and drug addicts ripped up the iron rods and electric wires from the facility and fled with them, leaving it dark and dangerous. I don’t guard this place after sunset as I don’t feel safe here at night.” Near the Kashmere Gate Metro station, there are two subways. But both don’t connect to the station and one of them is infamous for theft and pick-pocketing. “Don’t use the subway,” a hawker replied when asked about it.
The reporter found that one of the subways was indeed dark and ill-lit, with drug addicts, beggars and dogs roaming around, while its walls were coated with paan stains. “These two subways are home to drug addicts. The police are also aware of it, but it seems they not interested in taking action against them. These drug addicts are armed with knives, blades and could rob your valuables or money to purchase drugs,” said Mohammad Saifi, a hawker. Another subway near the Hanuman Mandir at Yamuna Bazaar in Kashmere Gate is used by both vehicles (auto, motorcycles and rickshaws) and pedestrians. Locals say it is unsafe even in daylight due to poor lighting and anti-social elements there.
Locals also claim that, apart from the drug addicts, most of these subways and FOBs are occupied by sex workers at night and many banned substances are sold there.
This newspaper, too, spotted several sex workers at FOBs and subways in Andrews Ganj, AIIMS, Lajpat Nagar, Gokulpuri and Moolchand. At INA, pedestrians have to walk long to enter the subway, which does not have an escalator or a lift. After the Delhi Metro hours, the subway is occupied by junkies and street vendors. However, the FOBs at ITO, Dhaula Kuan and Akshardham are better maintained and well-connected to the Metro stations there. To encourage pedestrians, the PWD has also come up with a plan to open shops in some subways till late night for the safety of women.
However, at Pushta Road in Gandhi Nagar, the FOB has virtually been turned into a bicycle parking lot for migrant labourers and is filled with garbage. At the Shalimar Bagh, Wazirpur and Gokulpuri FOBs, people were seen sleeping, drinking alcohol and playing cards. Devender Singh, a 62-year-old resident of Shalimar Bagh, who was carrying two heavy bags, said: “It is hard for me to climb these steps while carrying these bags. There is no escalator or a lift.”
Reasons for lack of proper utilisation
Traffic and road design experts said the placement of a pedestrian facility is instrumental to ensure its optimal use. Several studies have shown that pedestrians always prefer at-grade or road-level crossing facilities instead of going up-and-down to cross the road. However, at places like Mohan Singh Market at Sector-6 RK Puram, Sarojini Nagar, Okhla NSIC, South Extension, Sarai Kale Khan, FOBs are situated at least 100 metres away from the bus stand, forcing people to avoid them.
“If I use the FOB, I will have to walk at least 100 metres to reach the bus stop and also, the facility doesn’t have a lift,” said Shailja. There is a similar problem with the ITO skywalk, the longest pedestrian bridge in Delhi. Despite having lifts both sides, it is being underutilised by most pedestrians due to its poor planning. “The skywalk should be connected till the ITO signal,” said a pedestrian. The PWD had expected about 30,000 daily users of the skywalk, which was inaugurated in 2018, but it hardly sees 500 footfalls a day.
Police are not taking action, says PWD
“The PWD is working hard on improving the FOBs and subways in the city. The reconstruction work of FOBs has started in many places. The illuminating work is also going in subways. The work was delayed due to Covid-19, but it will soon be completed,” a senior PWD official, on condition of anonymity, said. The official added that the police also have been told to take action and remove anti-social elements from subways.
“We are also tired of drug addicts. FOBs and subways in Nizamuddin, Ashram, Sreeniwaspuri, JLN have been destroyed by drug addicts and thieves. They have stolen newly installed lights, a security guard was stabbed when he had tried to fight the thieves. Despite filing several complaints, the police haven’t acted much against them,” said the senior PWD official.
‘Police always keep an eye on anti-social elements’
“Studies are always conducted, but the problem will only be solved if they are implemented properly. Further, anti-social elements at subways and foot overbridges are definitely a major concern and to tackle the menace, we always keep an eye on them. A special police force can not be deployed only for pedestrian crossings. Hence, the civic authority should make arrangements for security guards,” a Delhi Police official said.
‘FOBs with escalators & lifts, should be in proper locations’
“Two years ago, we had also conducted a study on all the subways and FOBs of Delhi to find out why people are not using them frequently. Design, planning the locations some of the major reasons behind that,” said Sewa Ram, professor of transport planning at the School of Planning and Architecture. “FOBs, with escalators and lifts, should be in a proper location. We even suggested the government to start some activities inside subways to increase the footfalls, but nothing has been done in this regard so far,” added Sewa Ram.
S Velmurugan, senior principal scientist and former head, traffic engineering and safety division at the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), said: “For a safe pedestrian crossing, the government should construct a half flyover, a half crossing like in Lala Lajpat Rai Marg on the BRT. “Such designs are also cost-effective. A tabletop is also a good option at Maharani Bagh. Further, the PWD should come up with FOBs having lifts rather than escalators because due to air and dust pollution, the escalators stop working and their maintenance becomes a major problem.”
Principal scientist at the CRRI and ex-General manager, NHAI, JK Goyal said: “First, the location is important. Second, if you are constructing a FOB or a subway, you should close the medians, and implement stricter measures or a penalty, if pedestrians don’t use it. Most of the time, they take a short cut to cross the road.”
FObs nightmare for women
For women users, poorly lit pedestrian bridges become a nightmare after sundown. At a subway near Nigambodh Ghat, this newspaper found several drug addicts occupied the passage, while motorists were using it.