Roads in several parts of Salt Lake to the northeast of Kolkata are in bad shape as Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation has yet to start repairs even around two months after the current Trinamul board of the civic body was sworn in.
Mayor Krishna Chakraborty said repairs would start soon.
“We are drawing up a list of bad roads in all 42 wards that are in need of repairs. Work will start soon,” Chakraborty said.
Most parts of the city leading to New Town from the EM Bypass are being spruced up in the run-up to the Bengal Global Business Summit, but several key stretches of the township are in a sorry state.
A 200m-long stretch of the road that skirts the Salt Lake stadium and leads to the Amul island from the Hyatt Regency intersection on EM Bypass is riddled with potholes. Also, the surface along the entire stretch has worn off, exposing the brickwork beneath.
In front of the stadium, on the Amul island-bound flank
Cars and bikes sway dangerously while crossing this stretch, in front of a fuel pump opposite the stadium’s gate number 1.
A number of residents of IA Block, which is adjacent to the stretch, told this newspaper that multiple accidents had taken place in that section over the past couple of weeks.
“The stretch turns more risky at night as drivers and two-wheeler riders fail to gauge the depth and width of each pothole, resulting in accidents. Last week, a biker skidded badly and was grievously injured. He had to be taken to hospital,” said Debashis Dhar, a resident of IA Block.
The road skirting the stadium leads to Eastern Drainage Channel Road, which connects Sector V with Salt Lake, and is one of the busiest roads in the township.
A stretch of Second Avenue, which connects Udayachal Tourist Lodge with Purta Bhavan, is riddled with potholes, too. A huge pothole in front of the Purta
Bhavan traffic island was filled with sand. But the wheels of passing vehicles have spread the sand on the road, turning the surface slippery.
A traffic policeman posted near the island said they had to wave their hands to slow down vehicles approaching the stretch to prevent accidents.
“Cars and bikes tend to skid here because of the sand. We have to remain extremely cautious. Wheels of speeding vehicles will lose traction, leading to accidents,” a policeman said.
Salt Lake hasn’t seen thorough repair of roads, which add up 200km, for several years. The civic body has only done patchwork repairs, because of which surfaces often turn undulating and bumpy.