The bicycle menace at the Chingrighata intersection on EM Bypass in east Kolkata continued unchecked on Sunday, a day after an accident at the crossing that left a person dead.
The Chingrighata crossing — where roads from Sector V, Beleghata and Chaulpatty meet — is one of the most busy intersections on the 29km-long Bypass.
It sees a large number of pedestrians and people on bicycles.
On Saturday, a pedestrian died and at least six, one of whom was a cyclist, were injured after being hit by an allegedly speeding car that flouted a traffic signal at the intersection.
Salt Lake resident Chirotosh Roy, 52, who was at the wheel of the Hyundai i20, knocked down a cyclist before hitting the pedestrians. He was accompanied by his wife and driver in the car.
On Sunday, Roy was produced in a Salt Lake Court and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days. Roy’s lawyer Arnab Dutta moved a bail plea but it was opposed by public prosecutor Shabir Ali.
A cyclist amid vehicles at the Chingrighata crossing on Sunday afternoon. Gautam Bose
The Telegraph spent a couple of hours at the crossing on Sunday. On one side of the crossing is Sukantanagar and on the other is Beleghata.
Pedestrians and cyclists are barred at the crossing and yet it sees a constant stream of people crossing over from the eastern side towards Beleghata — by foot or on cycles — to fetch water.
The crossover point for pedestrians and cyclists is around 50m towards Science City from the intersection.
On Sunday too, bicycles as well as pedestrians flouted every traffic rule and crossed the Bypass even as cars, bikes and buses whizzed past them.
Most cyclists ignored the bay created for them. Pedestrians crossed the road while the signal was green for vehicles. Several cyclists zig-zagged on the road dodging moving vehicles.
Many motorists braked at the last moment to avoid hitting bicycles that suddenly appeared in front of them. Apart from crossing the road at will, cyclists were spotted moving in the wrong direction through both flanks.
Most of the men and women who were on bicycles were spotted with empty or filled jars of water.
“We have to get water from taps in Beleghata as there is a scarcity in Sukantanagar and Shantinagar,” said Pintu Pal, who was riding a bicycle with four jars.
Traffic cops were spotted dissuading cyclists and pedestrians from crossing the intersection while the signal was green for vehicles.
“We tried telling them not to cross but the majority of cyclists as well as pedestrians tend to ignore our warning,” said a traffic sergeant on duty at the crossing on Sunday.
The crossing itself poses several problems for motorist as there is a curve right near the base of the Chingrighata flyover. Most of those who drive through the Maa flyover often slow down at the last minute at the curve.
The road at Chingrighata has become constricted because of a culvert on a canal and the flyover, which takes up one flank of the Bypass, traffic planners said.
A pedestrian footbridge at the crossing is under construction. Cops said that once functional, the footbridge will take some load off the crossing.
In 2018, two students were killed while crossing the Bypass at Chingrighata. The mob fury that followed left five buses torched and several cars damaged.