Foot overbridges delayed,pedestrian deaths mount

Around nine FOBs were originally planned as part of the three projects,but a year later,only one at the Anand Vihar ISBT is ready. Even there,an escalator seems to be “out of order” most of the time.

In the last one year,several pedestrians lost their lives while trying to make their way through the traffic in these stretches. The three projects were part of a city improvement project,to be completed before the Commonwealth Games. “The grade separators and flyover were completed on time,but work on the foot overbridges slowed down,” a senior PWD official admitted.

None of the FOBs at Ghazipur crossing are ready,and they are unlikely to be completed before November. At Anand Vihar,the FOB at ISBT has been completed,but residents say that one of the escalators is constantly out of order. “The entire purpose of installing an escalator is defeated when you have to climb stairs to use it,’’ said Rita Singh,a resident of Anand Vihar.

The other two FOBs at Anand Vihar are operational,but the escalators are still in the process of being installed. In these cases also,there are stairs to get to the escalators. At Apsara Border,the two FOBs are operational but lifts have not been installed yet. The plan to construct a third one has been dropped for now. People can be seen crossing the roads in a hazardous manner in these place.

S K Maheshwari,a resident of Rampuri in Ghaziabad,has been trying to get the Public Works Department (PWD) to complete the pending work of constructing FOBs for a year now. “I approached the Public Grievances Commission over the PWD’s failure to complete FOBs on Road No 56. While nine FOBs were originally sanctioned,one along the Apsara Border was dropped. Since January,the PWD officials have been extending deadlines to complete the work. Meanwhile,innocent people are dying due to their failure to get the job done,” said Maheshwari.

An RTI reply to an application filed by Maheshwari,seeking information on major accidents that took place along the Ghazipur-Apsara Border,threw light on several accidents and deaths between 2010 and May 2011. “The RTI reply from several police stations,such as Ashok Vihar,Vivek Vihar,Madhu Vihar and Ghazipur,clearly states that over 60 accidents and pedestrian deaths occurred on these three stretches over a period of one year,” said Maheshwari.

The project managers have now been asked to ensure that the areas near FOBs have a railing at the central verge. “The FOBs have been built at a heavy cost as these are areas prone to heavy pedestrian movement. A railing at the central verge — five feet in height — will prevent pedestrians from crossing the road. Safety of pedestrians should be a matter of prime concern,and must be accorded higher priority than matter relating to beautification and aesthetics.’’

PWD officials have now committed themselves to putting up the railings across the central verges by December. The present date for completion for all the eight FOBs — varying anywhere between Rs 2 crore and Rs 8 crore — is October,said officials.