(2) Realty News - 01/08/13 Suffer Bypass ordeal for 2 more rains Source : The Times of India Nearly three years after the Centre approved the Rs 250 crore project to improve the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass and implement a bus rapid transit system (BRTS), the speedway remains a nightmare for motorists. Monsoon showers have washed away the road surface along several stretches, leaving loose bituminous gravel on the road that causes bikes and cars to skid. Three sections of the road along each flank have become particularly hazardous. Dotted with craters, these sections - two of them at vital intersections and one in between - trigger traffic snarls during peak hours and accidents happen even when traffic is lean. The worst stretch of the road is ironically bang in front of a five-star deluxe hotel that promises the world of comfort to guests. Those travelling from south to north encounter the death trap just after negotiating Parama Island. The entire width of the three-lane western flank is pock-marked with craters, some over 6-inch deep. "Usually, motorists get impatient after a long wait at a red light and speed up. Since this treacherous length of road is located just after the Parama Island intersection, it is extremely hazardous. Motorists who are unfamiliar with the condition slam on the brakes. Bikes, too, veer at the last moment to avoid a pothole, cutting lanes. We have asked Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) to repair the stretch at the earliest so that there are no fatalities," said a traffic sergeant who is posted at the intersection. The eastern flank at Ruby intersection is deteriorating by the day with large craters opening up all over. The crater zone is forcing motorists to brake at the last moment and make desperate attempts to avoid potholes. "It is pure madness in the middle. Bikers who cross the Ruby intersection are flirting with danger," said businessman Ashok Mukherjee who passes the stretch nearly every day. The third danger spot is at VIP Nagar. On either side of the barricade by Metro railway along central median, blacktop has completely disappeared, baring the gravelled earth and massive craters. Though KMDA has carried out patch repairs by dumping bricks into the craters, the high density traffic grinds the bricks to dust within hours. A shower then washes it away, exposing the craters. KMDA officials said they had been able to improve only a third of the road surface on EM Bypass due to ongoing flyover and Metro work between Dhapa and Patuli. "The elevated corridor to Park Circus will take at least a year more while the Metro project will go on for another couple of years. It is only thereafter that we can carry out improvement work on that stretch," a KMDA official said. That means, the Bypass will remain a nightmare for at least two monsoons more. It is only in 2016 that motorists will be able to enjoy a smooth ride on what is arguably the busiest road in Kolkata.
Posted on: Thu, 01 Aug 2013 12:21:00 +0000
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