A single hour of rainfall on Thursday evening was enough to transform the temporary walkway connecting the Aqua Line's Sector 51 and Blue Line's Sector 52 metro stations in Noida into a slippery, muddy stretch. Commuters, some carrying children and others lugging heavy baggage, jostled for footing on the narrow passage as crowds poured out of both stations during the evening rush hour.
The chaos, captured by commuters and widely shared on social media platform X, showed swarms of passengers stranded in the four-metre-wide passage, carefully taking each step to avoid slipping. For daily commuters on this route, the scene was all too familiar, albeit wetter than usual.
The Skywalk That Could Not Open
At the heart of the problem lies a Rs 40-crore skywalk that the Noida Authority constructed but then discovered it could not open. The L-shaped, air-conditioned structure, equipped with travelators, was launched in March 2023 with a one-year completion target. However, the project was delayed after officials realised that a beam at the Sector 51 entry point blocked access. Instead of removing the beam, the Authority has now decided to extend the skywalk by 100 metres to route around it. Excavation has begun, but completion is at least two months away.
Daily Ordeal for Commuters
The 400-metre interchange is an ordeal even on a dry day. Commuters exiting Sector 51 station must first walk to the rear of the building, take a circuitous route to reach the front, and then navigate the uneven, constricted walkway. The path varies in width from one metre in some places to three or four metres in others. Midway, the footpath ends, forcing pedestrians onto the road before they turn left towards Sector 52 station.
Adding to the difficulties, a skywalk pillar stands in the middle of the walkway. Barricading for the skywalk construction lines one side, while hoardings for an upcoming commercial store line the other. The temporary shade erected years ago has long since rusted away, leaving only iron bars that provide no protection from sun or rain.
Commuters Speak Out
"The rainfall on Thursday led to waterlogging at this stretch. We were forced to wade through accumulated water, carefully placing each step," said Anmol Kumar, a Sector 52 resident and BTech student in Greater Noida who takes this route daily. "I wonder how long it will take to make the skywalk operational."
Another commuter, who wished to remain anonymous, noted that pedestrians have improvised by placing bricks and tiles in low-lying patches to ease navigation. "If this is the situation in the first rainfall, what would happen when the monsoon arrives?" he asked.
By Friday, the stretch had dried out. Vendors selling mobile accessories, sugarcane juice, books, and flowers were back on the walkway. Autorickshaws parked on the roadside, hailing passengers headed to Greater Noida West, added to the congestion.
A History of Setbacks
The beam at Sector 51 station platform is only the latest in a series of setbacks that have pushed a one-year project past its fourth year. The project was originally designed with a single-pillar structure, but the discovery of an underground metro cable during excavation forced a redesign using a two-column support system. Construction curbs imposed by the National Green Tribunal during winter months caused further delays.
"A project that should have been completed in one year is not ready in four. This shows the incompetence of the officials involved," said Sanjeev Kumar, a Sector 51 resident. "The government should act against such officials, penalise them, and recover the additional costs from them."
