Joint drive clears illegal obstructions on three congested Andheri West roads

A joint drive by the Amboli police traffic police and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC has brought major relief to residents of Andheri West with three chronically congested roads finally cleared of illegal obstructionsSawant Road Veera Desai Road and Duttaji Salvi Road which routinely witnessed severe traffic snarls were freed of illegal hawkers abandoned vehicles and unauthorised parking of dumpers tankers and JCB machines As a result commute time on these stretches has dropped sharply from nearly 25 minutes earlier to about 10 minutes nowResidents said repeated complaints to civic and police authorities in the past had failed to yield results The breakthrough came after the Amboli police initiated a joint meeting with the BMC and traffic police leading to coordinated enforcement on the groundVehicles and heavy machinery illegally parked on Andheri West roads before the joint action by authoritiesSanjay Sawant a resident of Gundecha Symphony Society on Veera Desai Road said daily travel had become exhausting due to congestionldquoEvery day we struggled to cross our own area We were stuck for at least 25 minutes just to pass one lane Tankers and JCB machines were parked everywhere Despite several complaints nothing changed earlierrdquo he said He added that emergency services were frequentlyaffectedldquoSchool buses and ambulances were often stuck Now we can actually see the road Earlier all we saw were vehicles and traffic jams More than 60 societies on this stretch were impacted We are thankful to the BMC traffic police and Amboli police and have even invited them for a felicitationrdquo Sawant saidAnother resident Nakul Vaid said the situation had earlier turned unsafeldquoThere was no footpath left for walking as everything was encroached Dumpers and tankers dominated the area and residents were threatened whenever issues were raised Traffic kept increasing and public urination was common We only hope this problem does not returnrdquo he saidSuresh Makhija a committee member of Gundecha Society said the clearance had restored basic dignity for residentsldquoFor years heavy dumpers cranes and JCBs were parked here Their drivers created a nuisance by bathing and urinating on the roads For the first time in many years the issue has been resolved I am 76 years old and can finally walk safely on a footpathrdquo he saidSK Rout chairman of Palash A and B Wing Cooperative Housing Society said residents had noticed a visible changeldquoThere is no unauthorised commercial vehicle parking no roadside urination and no antisocial elements gathering Earlier it took 25 minutes to cross Veera Desai Road Now it barely takes 10 minutesrdquo he saidA senior police officer from Amboli police station said three FIRs were registered for illegal parking that posed a threat to public safetyldquoMore than 150 illegal hawkers were removed Earlier only one lane was usable due to encroachments All lanes are now clear We have towed 37 abandoned vehicles and continue to tow 50 to 60 illegally parked vehicles dailyrdquo the officer saidSenior Inspector Pramod Kokate of Amboli police station said the enforcement drive would continueldquoWe seized abandoned vehicles JCBs tankers and trucks Three FIRs were registered for dangerous parking that endangered lives The action will continue in coordination with the BMC and traffic police to ensure congestion does not returnrdquo he said60Approx no of societies that were affected