Bikers hit taxi on JJ flyover, die

Two youth on a motorcycle died after they crashed into a taxi on the JJ flyover late on Sunday.

The police said bike rider Jilpesh Rawal, 20, a resident of Lalbaug, with 18-year-old Bhavin Jain from Chinchpokli on the pillion, was allegedly speeding towards Colaba to attend a friend’s birthday party around 10pm.

Although two-wheelers have been for the last two years barred from using the JJ flyover following several accidents involving such vehicles there, the two decided to take the flyover to get to the venue of the birthday bash early.

Rawal allegedly failed to negotiate a sharp curve on the flyover and lost control of the motorcycle. The vehicle then hit the road divider, skidded and crashed into a taxi in front.

“The taxi driver immediately stopped the vehicle and on seeing Rawal and Jain lying injured, he informed the police. While Rawal died on the spot, we rushed Jain to JJ Hospital, from where his parents shifted him to Bhatia Hospital. But, since there was no room for him in that hospital’s intensive care unit, Jain was taken to Saifi Hospital, where he was declared dead,” said an officer from the Pydhonie police station.

The traffic police had earlier said it doesn’t have the adequate number of personnel to be deployed at both ends of the JJ flyover round-the-clock to prevent two-wheeler riders from using it.