“A case in point is Bharatmata junction in F-South ward where we would see four-five police personnel regulating traffic earlier. We suggested an island that eliminated the bottleneck - which was the root cause of traffic snarls and a safety hazard. Since the implementation of the island and some other simple measures, the traffic is self-regulated,” Ashar said

Experts feel the use of skywalks was more for improving vehicular traffic than for pedestrians. “Skywalks are not necessarily solutions for improving pedestrian flow because it might not be the natural path a commuter wants to take. It is generally constructed to improve vehicular traffic,” said Madhav Pai, executive director at the World Resources Institute, India (WRI India) Ross Centre.

He however added that well designed and well-connected skywalks could be helpful. “We must also look at providing lifts and escalators here. As far as safety is concerned, if more than 1,000 pedestrians start using it every hour, it will automatically become safer too. Safety depends on the volume of pedestrians. Safety can also be enhanced by looking at sleek, lightweight designs that are clearly visible from the street,” Pai added.