Twenty-three minutes, saved by a 650m-long bridge.
The difference between two car rides from Taratala to Esplanade — one via the Bailey bridge in Alipore on Thursday and the other via the Majerhat (Jai Hind) bridge on Friday — was 23 minutes.
The Telegraph took the car rides through the morning rush. The wait at the signals at the busy intersections was almost the same on both days, barring a few extra minutes at the Bailey bridge because of the passage of a freight train.
Friday
Taratala to Esplanade via the Majerhat bridge (around 8km): 10am to 10.42am
⚫Taratala to the Majerhat bridge: 5 minutes
Traffic movement was reasonably slow on the Taratala flyover because police stopped cars whenever the tail of vehicles on the Majerhat bridge grew long
⚫The Majerhat bridge to Ekbalpore: 11 minutes
The Mominpore-bound flank of the bridge had bumper-to-bumper traffic. But vehicles kept moving. Occasionally, a phone in an outstretched arm was recording the journey.
The load of vehicles on the Taratala-bound flank was much lighter. During the descent towards Mominpore, the cars came to a complete halt for the first time. The snarl got moving within a couple of minutes. For probably the first time in two years, the stretch of Diamond Harbour Road in Mominpore was chock-a-block with traffic.
Since a bulk of the traffic on the stretch came from Majerhat, it had remained relatively deserted since the collapse of the bridge.
⚫Ekbalpore to police training school: 10 minutes
Of which, around seven minutes were spent at the traffic signals at Ekbalpore and Alipore zoo.
⚫PTS to Fort William: 9 minutes
⚫Fort William to Esplanade: 7 minutes
⚫Total time taken: 42 minutes
The plaque at the Taratala end of the new flyover Bishwarup Dutta
Thursday
Taratala to Esplanade via Bailey bridge (around 9km): 10am to 11.05am
⚫Taratala to Bailey bridge signal: 12 minutes
The Taratala flyover saw vehicles moving at a snail’s pace. Ditto on Naliniranjan Avenue, after taking a right turn following the descent from the flyover.
⚫Bailey Bridge to Lalbati: 22 minutes
Around 10 minutes were spent at the Bailey bridge level crossing because a freight train was passing through.
The rest of the stretch was chock-a-block, too.
⚫Lalbati to Bhabani Bhavan: 5 minutes
⚫Bhabani Bhavan to Race Course: 11 minutes
Almost half of which was spent waiting at the DL Khan Road signal
⚫Race Course to Fort William: 6 minutes
⚫Fort William to Esplanade: 9 minutes
⚫Total time taken: 65 minutes