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Skywalk looms over MG Road in Bangalore

Pedestrians and motorists have been rendered vulnerable by the impending work to lay planks on the foot overbridge.

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MG Road, the lifeline of Bangalore’s central business district, was thrown open to all on Monday morning. But, the bad news is, it seems, helmets could now be inevitable not just for two-wheeler riders but also the hundreds of pedestrians walking down the road. Reason: The under-construction skywalk.

The work on Bangalore Metro gathered momentum after the train set rolling on the testing tracks in Byappanahalli Metro depot. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation  Limited (BMRCL), along with city traffic police, had blocked MG Road from Brigade Junction to Anil Kumble Circle to erect the skywalk.

But what poses threat to vehicles and people walking under the main frame is the impending work on the suspended skywalk. The frame, which looks like a river bridge, stands with eight steel columns built horizontally on which the walking boards will be fitted. The main frame of the foot-overbridge leading to the elevated MG Road station is suspended mid-air. The structure now hangs from the Plaza theatre to the station across the road.

“We were not informed either by the police or Metro officials about this development. We still don’t know when they are going to start work on the foot-overbridge and whether we should move our business elsewhere or protect our heads with helmets,” said Mohammed Munniyar, the owner of a make-shift bookstall in front of Plaza.

A BMRCL spokesperson, however, told DNA that the work on the bridge is already on. “The work is on-going but the safety of people and vehicles moving beneath is our primary concern. Major amount of work will be done late in the night. Now that the frame is installed, the remaining part of the work will start soon.”
Disclosing other plans, he said, “There’ll be elevators on either side of the Metro station as well as Plaza theatre. A ticket counter will also be placed near the theatre.”

Echoing fellow motorists’ concern, Avishek Ghosh Bag, said: “They should ideally do the fitting of walking boards on the skywalk after 11pm.  Otherwise one would hear of minor injuries on two-wheeler riders almost every day.”

As for Plaza, the erstwhile theatre is now home to one leg of the skywalk. The area has been dug up to make way for elevators and a ticket counter.   

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