A 350-metre foot overbridge (FOB) could enable commuters going to Bandra Terminus avoid the bustle around Bandra station and the threat of dishonest drivers. Auto drivers transport passengers between the station and the terminus, dropping them off at the north end (towards Khar), for a fee of INR 30 to 40 per person. An existing south entry/exit gate of Bandra Terminus, which comprises a booking office and circulating space, has been blocked by Railways, resulting in a distance of around 400 meters.
The far north end of Bandra Terminus is the only additional point of entry and departure. The distance between the station and the terminus appears to be greater because the only point of access and exit is at the far north end. The entry/exit near Khar station has been heavily used by the railways, although there isn't much signage telling commuters where to proceed from the station to Bandra station.
A Look At The Current Scenario:
The Western Railway (WR) currently has a 1.2-kilometer FOB, or skywalk, connecting the Churchgate end of the Khar suburban station to the Churchgate end of the Bandra Terminus, connecting small FOBs. It crosses platform 1 and travels the whole length of the terminus.
In 2022, WR put into service the last 314-meter FOB that connected the Bandra Terminus to the Khar suburban station, even though the long FOB there had already been constructed. Now that the dots have been joined, the FOB is 1.2 kilometres, making the walk smooth.
Along with the main station entrance and a booking office that are closed and shut and not for public use, the last 196 meters of the FOB, which leads to the Churchgate end of the Bandra Terminus, is complete isolated area now.
Walking on this path in night-time would be risky. Additionally, it is challenging to walk across the bridge due to its few entry/exit points. There are times when homeless sit on it. The last 196 meters are in poor condition, with locked and sealed gates at the north end and broken tube lights. Because the station's main circulating section is sealed at this end, it doesn't even land on platform 1 but instead travels to platform 3.
Is There A Solution?
All of the connectivity problems would be resolved if the same bridge were to be built farther south, connecting this section to the Bandra suburban station. The bridge must connect to the current north end (Khar end) bridge of Bandra local station and cross the single STA (Suburban Traffic Avoidance) line parallel to the flyover. FOBs are present at both ends; the only difference is that they need to be connected.
A 340-meter skywalk, valued at INR 24 crore, has already been proposed by WR officials to connect Bandra Terminus. This will serve as a substitute for the auto rickshaw drivers outside Bandra East station and allow passengers to conveniently reach Bandra Terminus without having to get off the road at Bandra station.
WR Chief Public Relations Officer Vineet Abhishek said that the construction of a new bridge at the north-east end at Bandra station with the Bandra Terminus south end skywalk has been approved and will be processed as it is currently under tender.
The 10-meter-wide FoB at the rail station's Churchgate terminus was installed in January 2020. In 2021, the station's existing FOBs were disassembled and rebuilt, and a few new bridges were added, notably the ones at the Bandra LC gate end, Khar station (Churchgate end), and Bandra suburban station (Virar end). Between the Bandra local and Terminus station, a gap was created by the network of these bridges. In 2022, a concept was first proposed, and in 2023, a specific plan was developed. However, a number of factors contributed to the process's actual implementation, and processing took time. The bridge has been brought forward for tendering and is now officially approved as of 2024. Work on the project will begin after the tenders are finalised, which may take a few more years.