Police Diary: Mumbai Traffic cops turn ‘mechanics’ on Eastern Freeway

To reduce backlogs, officers are forced daily to resort to quickfixes to facilitate traffic flow on the bridge that connects thousands of motorists from the eastern suburbs to south Mumbai.

Echoing a similar sentiment as Murkute, head constable, Raghav Juwapkar said that it earlier took him 15-17 minutes to change the tyres of a car that had stalled, but now he targets 8-10 minutes to change a tyre.

“Traffic gets affected immediately and there is no outlet. Hence the solution is to get these cars moving even if we have to change the tyre. It is shocking how people don’t know how to change a tyre,” Juwapkar said.

Watch Video: What’s making news

Prepared for a worst case scenario, in case there is no extra tyre in the broken-down vehicle or if no towing van is available, Juwapkar has an iron cable with a hook attached, at the back of his motorcycle to drag the vehicles.

According to senior police inspector, Wadala traffic Chowky, Sunita Nashikar, there are plenty of breakdowns on the freeway due to tyre bursts or punctures. “A lot of the cars that travel are not from Mumbai, because the freeway is fast moving and the surface is smooth, the drivers speed and end up burning out their tyres,” she said.

According to police, at least three breakdowns take place on the southbound carriageway in the morning and at least three in the evening peak time.

Constable Maurti Sanap, a rider on the freeway, cannot recall how many SUVs that ran out of fuel he must have pushed.

“The least they could do is check if the vehicle has enough fuel to move across the freeway,” Sanap said.

Another rider said that he and his colleagues often feel like “mechanics”. “When we approach any car which has come to a halt, the driver instantly asks if we could check the engine. We oblige because otherwise traffic will pile up and we will be pulled up by our superiors,” said the officer.