Beginning Saturday, a portion of the Chingrighata intersection on EM Bypass will be blocked for a traffic trial, which will let police figure out how vehicle flow will be hit if Metro authorities construct a pillar at the crossing.
“The trial will be held for four days. We want motorists to get used to it in the first two days when vehicular load is expected to be comparatively low,” said Surya Pratap Yadav, deputy police commissioner responsible for managing the city’s traffic.
“Depending on the outcome, we will decide when Metro authorities can start constructing the pillar.”
“Pillar number 318” is key to holding the viaduct of the New Garia-Airport Metro that takes a curve from Chingrighata towards Salt Lake from EM Bypass. The construction of the pillar has been stalled for the last few years with the police and the KMDA — which maintains EM Bypass — saying traffic disruption on the busy corridor may not be manageable.
“We have been waiting for a nod since October when it was decided that the Chingrighata site would be handed to us for the Metro work. After this trial, we hope the pillar construction can begin,” said an official of RVNL, the implementing agency of the Metro project.
A 16mX16m space will be blocked at the Chingrighata intersection from Saturday.
Officers will examine the effect of the reduced road space on traffic. Based on the findings, traffic along EM Bypass and roads merging with it is likely to be regulated on Monday and Tuesday to ensure vehicles move smoothly during rush hours.
The traffic trial comes at a time when construction of a Metro pillar is on at the Metropolitan intersection, for which a portion of the Bypass has been barricaded.