Watch out for Mumbai's Skywalk!

By Krutika Chaturvedi and Raksha Shetty, CNBC-TV18

Mumbai's just got its first Skywalk today; a pedestrian overbridge costing Rs 13 crore that pedestrians can use to avoid the congested roads. It is the first major transportation project that is complete in Mumbai after a long time. But will commuters accept the skywalk?

It is bright yellow and very hard to miss. The Bandra Skywalk was inaugurated just today. It is 1.3 km long and flies over the busy Kalanagar junction, usually a nightmare for pedestrians to cross over.

This is one of the 50 skywalks the city's development authority is planning at the total cost of Rs 600 crore. With this one finally completed, the Chief Minister is calling it a crucial turning point in Mumbai's image makeover.

“This skywalk is a landmark for Mumbai,” said Vilasrao Deshmukh, Chief Minister, Maharashtra.

Also, built at the cost of Rs 13 crore, many are asking if people will actually use this pedestrian overbridge. It has too many stairs, it is too roundabout for the busy commuter and of course it is not mandatory.. But the MMRDA is confident the Skywalk will be immensely successful.

“You cannot run a skywalk through a building. I have used it and it is so much better than walking on the congested roads. It is not possible to walk outside the railway station,” said Ratnakar Gaikwad, Commissioner, MMRDA.

The Chief Minister also has reason to smile. This Skywalk is the only major infrastructure project that has actually been completed in his term. The Bandra Worli Sea Link, the metro rail, and a variety of other infrastructure projects are still years away from transforming Mumbai into Shanghai.

There is a lot of optimism and a hope that the authorities live up to it.