Kolkata police have decided to draw up a list of some of the key thoroughfares marked by potholes and craters that pose threats to motorists.
The move comes within four days of the accidental death of a traffic sergeant on a cratered Basanti Highway on Monday afternoon.
Sashi Bhushan Minj, 32, was attached to Tiljala traffic guard and was on motorcycle patrol duty at Bantala Kantapukur on the eastern fringes of Kolkata when the bike skidded.
He fell on a huge crater while trying to negotiate with traffic from the opposite end. He was taken to a private hospital on the EM Bypass where he was declared dead.
Soon after the accident, Kolkata police instructed all 25 traffic guards across the city to draw up a list of roads that are marked by craters and potholes and submit it by Friday.
Apart from stretches of Circular Garden Reach Road, Mayurbhanj Road and Garden Reach Road in the port area of southwest Kolkata, which have suffered wear and tear following movement of heavy trucks, the officers have also identified several small stretches across the city that would need repair.
Those include parts of Raja SC Mullick Road on the southern fringes, a spot near Patuli on EM Bypass, a few pockets of Free School Street in central Kolkata and Chitpore Road in the north and a stretch of EM Bypass between its intersection with Beleghata Main Road and Yuba Bharati Krirangan.
Bad road conditions in several stretches across the city have been a cause of despair for motorists who have often complained about paying road taxes, then for repairs.
Several two-wheeler riders said now that the fine for riding without a helmet has been hiked from Rs 100 to Rs 1,000, roads should be repaired to avoid accidents.
The list identified three things, said officers.
- Stretches of roads with potholes and depressions that pose a risk to traffic movement, particularly motorists on two-wheelers.
- Whether any building material has been left dumped on either side. Sand and stone chips often result in two-wheelers skidding on the road-surface.
- Identify uncovered manholes that have sunk deep into the road surface throwing up a challenge to motorists trying to negotiate them.
- “A small depression or a sunken manhole-pit can be enough to throw a motorist off a two-wheeler. We are drawing up a list of roads based on the reports sent in by the traffic guards,” said a senior officer.
“This stock taking exercise is aimed at identifying such unknown weak spots on road surfaces so that accidents can be reduced,” he said.