Commuters face traffic trauma as key Behala roads dug up for civic work
Dwaipayan Ghosh | TNN | Dec 27, 2018, 10:56 IST
File photoKOLKATA: Thousands of commuters from Behala — especially those commuting on buses and are already forced to travel several extra kilometres following the Majerhat bridge collapse — have been left in the lurch after yet another alternative road offering a quick connection with the Metro was dug up by Kolkata Municipal Corporation at the Siriti Crossing near Tollygunge Karunamoyee bridge.
KMC officials said that the digging was necessary to complete an urgent water supply project and that they were hoping to wrap up the work, which began on December 22, in the next four days. .
Due to the digging, at least eight bus routes had to be reworked and the journey time between Behala Chowrasta and Sakherbazar to Tollygunge Metro has escalated up to 70 minutes from the earlier 30 minutes (approx).
“The popularity of this route led the transport department to introduce two new routes — M16 through Motilal Gupta Road and Raja Rammohan Toy Road and M-18 through Raja Rammohan Roy Road — to Tollygunge Metro. Both routes are extremely popular, along with S-31 route, with buses being run in 10-minute intervals. But now, all buses are being forced to take the Thakurpukur-Kabardanga-Haridevpur route to reach Tollygunge Metro. In all, eight bus routes are being forced to use the already congested Mahatma Gandhi Road through Haridevpur leading to terrible snarls,” said Anjan Mukherjee, a resident of Behala Sakherbazar.
With both James long Sarani and Diamond Harbour Road already dug up, travelling to Thakurpukur has also become a headache. The work near Thakurpukur on DH Road is also triggering traffic congestion. While a KEIP project work is on at James Long Sarani, the DH Road has been dug for concretization work.
The autos are also being forced to make detours through Karunamoyee Ghat Road. “They are taking extra money from us. Residents of East Behala — from Sakherbazar to Sodepur — have no option but to depend on them,” said Sovon Dasgupta, a resident of Behala Chowrasta.
“The agencies have been sent the deadline of 8pm on Friday to restore the crossings,” said police.
KMC officials said that the digging was necessary to complete an urgent water supply project and that they were hoping to wrap up the work, which began on December 22, in the next four days. .
Due to the digging, at least eight bus routes had to be reworked and the journey time between Behala Chowrasta and Sakherbazar to Tollygunge Metro has escalated up to 70 minutes from the earlier 30 minutes (approx).
“The popularity of this route led the transport department to introduce two new routes — M16 through Motilal Gupta Road and Raja Rammohan Toy Road and M-18 through Raja Rammohan Roy Road — to Tollygunge Metro. Both routes are extremely popular, along with S-31 route, with buses being run in 10-minute intervals. But now, all buses are being forced to take the Thakurpukur-Kabardanga-Haridevpur route to reach Tollygunge Metro. In all, eight bus routes are being forced to use the already congested Mahatma Gandhi Road through Haridevpur leading to terrible snarls,” said Anjan Mukherjee, a resident of Behala Sakherbazar.
With both James long Sarani and Diamond Harbour Road already dug up, travelling to Thakurpukur has also become a headache. The work near Thakurpukur on DH Road is also triggering traffic congestion. While a KEIP project work is on at James Long Sarani, the DH Road has been dug for concretization work.
The autos are also being forced to make detours through Karunamoyee Ghat Road. “They are taking extra money from us. Residents of East Behala — from Sakherbazar to Sodepur — have no option but to depend on them,” said Sovon Dasgupta, a resident of Behala Chowrasta.
“The agencies have been sent the deadline of 8pm on Friday to restore the crossings,” said police.
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