While traffic continues to trouble Punekars, residents have claimed that it has now also become difficult to walk on the city's footpaths. What was once intended to create a sustainable mobile ecosystem is now occupied by hawkers and illegally parked vehicles, forcing pedestrians to walk on the roads.
The footpath project includes demarcated zones for commercial activities, pedestrians, bicycles, and vehicles to ensure that road infrastructure is safe for pedestrians, cyclists, and disabled persons. However, many hawkers selling street food, books, decorative items, fruits, flowers, and vegetables have encroached on the entire stretch, creating a hindrance for pedestrians. Additionally, the presence of buyers around these shops worsens the woes of commuters.
Residents claim that they have to navigate through hawkers and heavy traffic on stretches such as Salunke Vihar Road, near Khalsa Dairy in Viman Nagar.
Mala Rihan, a concerned citizen, said, “The stretch from Princeton Town to the AD-Labs Chowk is obstructed. Bikes are parked on footpaths, fruit sellers and vendors have commercialized the public space, causing trouble for residents. Even educated people park their cars right next to the footpath, blocking the way for pedestrians to cross the roads. The situation is getting worse, as PMC’s encroachment drives are proving ineffective. Days after PMC action, the vendors return and reclaim the footpaths as their property.”
Trouble in Shivaji Nagar and Kalyani Nagar
Shashank Rathod, a resident of Aundh, said, “There are so many footpaths in the city that have been encroached by vendors, and in areas like Shivaji Nagar, people ride their two-wheelers on the footpath just to save 2-3 seconds. We hear so much in the news about joggers getting hurt while walking on the footpath because the city lacks law and order.”
Nisha Mahajan, a resident of Kalyani Nagar, highlighted that even though anti-encroachment drives are a regular activity in the city, there has been hardly any improvement in the condition of footpaths.
“The condition of footpaths in our area is worse. It becomes particularly bad in the evening when people park their vehicles near the footpath, and crowds gather at these shops. The footpaths get crowded, making it very difficult to walk. The fruit sellers and vendors continue to encroach on the footpaths, and despite repeated actions by civic bodies, the situation remains the same,” added Mahajan.
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