Why BEST is diverting buses on several routes in Mumbai

Indian Express

7 days ago

The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) has implemented a series of temporary bus route changes across Mumbai over the past three days due to festival preparations, cultural events and civic work.
On Wednesday evening, services on route number 333 in the Marol Depot area were curtailed at Chakala Cigarette Factory from 7.15 pm to make way for pavilion construction for the Ganpati festival at Maharshi Valmiki Chowk.
The previous day saw multiple diversions in the Worli area owing to Govinda Pathak rehearsals on Veer Nariman Road in Worli Village. From 7.15 pm, routes 169, 118, 162, 56, 54, 44 and 125 were diverted from Babasaheb Worlikar Chowk via Annie Besant Road, turning right at Hadkamkar Chowk and making a U-turn at Abdul Gaffar Circle.
While buses on routes 118 and 162 travelled towards Worli Village, the remaining headed to Worli Depot. On the same evening, service on route 216 was suspended at Naigaon Police Colony from 7 pm due to the Ganpati arrival ceremony at MHADA Colony in Bhoiwada. Later, at 10,30 pm, service on route 605 in the Vikhroli Depot area was curtailed at Vaibhav Chowk in connection with Dahi Handi practice at Tembipada, Bhandup.
Earlier on Tuesday, at 10.15 am, nine services operating from the Shivajinagar Depot, A26, A53, A60, A507, A511, A380, A372, A493 and A517, were diverted in the down direction from Maharashtra Nagar via the bridge and Indian Oil Nagar because of encroachment removal work undertaken by the municipal corporation.
'All diversions are temporary and will remain in effect until the conclusion of the respective events and completion of road works,' said a BEST official.
On August 12, traffic changes for Angaraki Chaturthi affected operations in the Worli Depot area, with buses on routes 37, 87, 28, 33, 85, 92, 62, 54, 86, 172, 169 and 165 diverted from S K Bole Road via Gopal Krishna Gokhale Road, turning right from Jakadevi Chowk onto Appasaheb Marathe Marg from 10.30 am the same day. In Maharashtra Nagar, the same nine routes affected by later encroachment work had already been diverted from 10.15 am. in the down direction via the bridge and Indian Oil Nagar because of ongoing road repairs.