The traffic curbs which were in place at the EM Bypass-Prince Anwar Shah Road connector intersection for over two years to facilitate Metro construction were lifted on Saturday night, said officers of Kolkata police's traffic department.
So long, vehicles approaching the Bypass from the Anwar Shah Road connector were not allowed to turn right, towards Garia, at the crossing.
Similarly, vehicles moving through the Bypass from Ruby could not turn right at the intersection, also called the Avishikta crossing, to enter the Anwar Shah Road connector.
Garia-bound vehicles from the Anwar Shah Road connector had to turn left and then take a U-turn at Mandipara to enter the eastern flank of the Bypass.
Vehicles on the Bypass that were to move west through the Anwar Shah Road connector had to proceed straight towards Patuli and take a U-turn. The vehicles would then enter the connector through the Avishikta crossing.
From Sunday, Garia-bound cars on the Anwar Shah Road connector did not have to take the detour till Mandirpara. Instead, they took a right turn at the Avishikta crossing, like they did before the curbs were imposed.
Vehicles from the direction of Ruby can take a right turn at the crossing and enter the connector. Till recently, some barricades were in place on the Ruby-bound flank of the Bypass near the Avishikta crossing. The barricades had narrowed the carriageway.
“The diversions were lifted following an intimation from the Metro authorities. The stretch of the Bypass near the Avishikta crossing has been widened. But the volume of traffic on the Bypass is so much that any diversion slows down vehicles during rush hours,” said an officer.
“With the diversions gone, the Bypass-Anwar Shah Road connector crossing, one of the busier ones along the Bypass, is expected to have a smooth flow of traffic,” said an officer of the traffic department.
The Bypass near the Avishikta crossing has been widened by 25 metres on the west and 12 metres on the east, the police said.“The curbs were lifted on Saturday night so that the cops get a heads-up on the ground situation on Sunday, when the traffic load is comparatively lighter,” he said.
The curbs were imposed in February 2021 to facilitate the construction of the New Garia-arport Metro corridor. Railway officials said the construction of foot overbridges for Kavi Sukanta station of the Metro corridor was the last leg of work that needed to be over before the traffic curbs were lifted.
Metro services were supposed to have been started on the New Garia-Ruby stretch of the New Garia-airport Metro corridor by the end of February. Three weeks into May, there is still no word on the possible date of the start of commercial run on the 5.4km stretch.