Pedestrians and cyclists still cross EM Bypass at the Chingrighata intersection at will, despite a foot overbridge at the spot, often forcing motorists to slam the brakes at the last minute or swerve dangerously to avoid hitting them.
A constant stream of pedestrians and bicycles crosses the Chingrighata crossing — the busiest intersection on EM Bypass — throughout the day without any regard for traffic rules.
The intersection has witnessed multiple accidents involving cyclists or pedestrians over the years. Back in 2018, a couple of students on bicycles died after being hit by a bus.
A mob then blocked the crossing, torched four buses and pelted police and firemen with stones.
Five years later, the crossing has a pedestrian foot overbridge equipped with escalators and ramps for bicycles.
Boom barriers that work in tandem with the traffic signalling system to regulate movement of pedestrians are also in place.
The foot overbridge, however, has few takers barring some college-goers and people headed for work during rush hours. Cops can often be seen shouting or waving their hands at pedestrians and people on bicycles, who cross the Bypass with vehicles whizzing past them ignoring warning from the police.
A Kasba resident recounted his experience while riding his car to the airport one morning last week.
"The signal at the Chingrighata crossing was green, so my driver continued at a speed that was within the limit. Two cycles suddenly came in front of the car. The driver slammed the brakes to avert an accident," he said. "Policemen stood watching the scene but did nothing."
On Sunday, The Telegraph spent close to an hour at the Chingrighata crossing, where the Bypass curves left. Construction work of a pier of the New Garia-airport Metro corridor is on at the crossing.
Even after the foot overbridge became operational, the police allowed pedestrians to cross the Bypass at the crossing where work on the Metro pillar is on. Now that has been stopped because of the construction.
Surya Pratap Yadav, deputy commissioner of Kolkata police's traffic wing, said stopping the crossover at Chingrighata for pedestrians has improved traffic flow in the area.
"We are not allowing pedestrians to cross (the Bypass) at the Chingrighata crossing and this has improved the overall traffic movement in this area. Despite the fact that a portion of the carriageway is cordoned off to facilitate construction of a Metro pier, traffic movement is satisfactory here," Yadav said, adding that the intersection poses several key challenges that have to be addressed carefully.
The "pillar number 318” is key to holding the viaduct of the Metro corridor, which takes a curve from the Chingrighata intersection towards Salt Lake.
The police have placed a host of measures and signage, apart from the traffic signalling system, at the crossing to regulate the movement of vehicles.
Vehicles headed from north towards the airport and New Town are allowed to take a left turn at the Chingrighata crossing, while those headed towards Science City from Sector V are channelled into two rows and officers ensure they keep driving through the left lane till VIP Sweets, where they hit the Bypass.
A sizeable section of vehicles headed from Sector V along the Salt Lake Bypass also cross the EM Bypass and head towards Canal South Road, while some take a right turn towards Ultadanga.
On Sunday, despite the heavy volume of traffic at the intersection, pedestrians and cyclists from Sukantanagar and Beleghata were rarely spotted using the foot overbridge.
The stretch of the Bypass near the overbridge seemed a free zone for pedestrians and cyclists.
Many of these people stay in and around Sukantanagar and cross over to Beleghata to fetch water or shop from markets there.
A traffic police sergeant posted at Chingrighata said that no traffic safety measure seems to work there.
"We shout at the top of our voice or wave our hands at them asking them not to cross the Bypass, but people don't bother to listen to us. The mindset has to change," the sergeant said on Sunday morning.