The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), along with Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS), has started work on the interim transformation of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) junction. The aim is to improve pedestrian safety and traffic flow.
Reducing accidents
BIGRS was started in 2015 after an agreement was signed between Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and U.S. businessman Michael Bloomberg. Under BIGRS, the BMC and the traffic police, with support from the National Association of City Transportation Officials – Global Designing Cities Initiative (NACTO-GDCI) are carrying out transformation of CSMT to reduce road accidents, injuries and deaths.
Ever since the memorandum of understanding was signed in 2015, a Bloomberg press note said there has been a 22% reduction in road crash deaths. The BMC has accepted their Global Street Design Guide.
Using unused spaces
After several rounds of on-site traffic study and data collection, NACTO-GDCI developed the redesign of CSMT junction that capitalises on unused spaces to make the street safer for all users. This means the corporation will be extending kerbs to shorten pedestrian crossings, adding refuge islands, establishing dedicated parking spots, and adding benches, planters and pavers to make sidewalks more accessible and attractive to pedestrians while aligning traffic lanes. According to the press note, the materials used in this transformation are temporary and moveable. The temporary redesign will be completed by Friday.
“The initiative has identified road space that sees minimum vehicular movement and those spaces have been set aside for pedestrians. Besides, there will be new ‘zebra crossings’ for pedestrians. This will not affect vehicular movement and instead make more space available for pedestrians,” said a BMC press note.
The work on six other junctions is nearly complete, while work on the others is under way. “The initiative has set aside space for taxis to pick up or drop passengers. We are showing designs to people on site and taking feedback. The objective is to use underutilised space without compromising on vehicular movement,” said a Bloomberg spokesperson.
