India, Oct. 6 -- When 25-year-old Sanjay Bhoir decided to take the Vasai creek railway bridge on September 27 to get to Naigaon railway station, he was well aware of the many dangers that awaited him.

The bridge had just enough space for two railway tracks and a narrow concreted strip along the edge, to facilitate track repair and maintenance work. Like other residents of Panju, an island in Vasai creek, Bhoir relied on this narrow strip to get to Naigaon station, the islanders' gateway to other parts of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

Each journey along the tracks lasted at least 20 minutes, and pedestrians had to duck several times when local trains sped past - often in tandem, in opposite directions - with less than an arm's le...