Rash driving, jumping signals, picking up and dropping passengers in the middle of the road, bus drivers on VIP Road flout traffic rules at will.
And these make one of the most important connectors to the airport one of the most dangerous roads in the city.
Hawkers and jaywalkers near key intersections, including Kestopur, Baguiati and Joramandir, add to the chaos.
A bus stops in the middle of VIP Road to pick up passengers, while another bus tries to overtake it dangerously. Biswarup Dutta
A 38-year-old man died in November after a bus rammed into his motorcycle at high speed before bursting into flames near Kestopur flyover
The driver even after hitting the two-wheeler rider stepped on the accelerator and dragged the bike for around 50 feet before both the vehicles caught fire.
There are at least six designated bus stops along the both the airport-bound and the Ultadanga-bound flanks of VIP Road that include Lake Town, Kestopur, Baguiati, Joramandir and Haldirams before the airport on one end and Ultadanga on the other.
However, bus drivers tend to pick up and drop off passengers in the middle of the road.
The worst stretches are on the airport-bound flank of VIP Road near the Baguiati pedestrian subway complex and near the Kestopur crossing on the Ultadanga-bound flank of the road.
Metro visited several stretches along VIP Road and saw buses flouting rules at will putting other road users at danger.
A government bus on the Ultadanga-bound flank stopped in the middle of the road at Kestopur crossing to pick up passengers, forcing vehicles behind it to stop abruptly. The bus did not even enter the bus bay at the crossing.
A minibus, also headed towards Ultadanga, moved to the extreme right of the road, overtook the other government buses and stopped right in front of them to pick up passengers.
The designated bus stop in Kestopur is on a raised pavement in front of a government school but buses rarely stop there.
“We have to run to catch buses every day. Often, other buses try to overtake from the left making it risky for us,” Samaresh Ghosh, a resident of Baguiati, said.
The buses on both the flanks of VIP Road accelerate as soon as the traffic signal turns green.
A bus stops in the middle of VIP Road to pick up passengers, while another bus tries to overtake it dangerously. Biswarup Dutta
Despite regular accidents, the bus drivers seem indifferent.
On the airport-bound flank of the VIP Road, a private bus raced to reach some passengers waiting near the Baguiati subway complex while another bus, headed in the same direction, overtook it and stopped diagonally in the middle of the road to pick them up.
The bus bay in front of Baguiati subway had a deserted look. “None of the buses enter the bus bay so why should we walk upto there,” said Debabrata Shome, who was heading to Rashbehari Avenue.
Metro did spot a single traffic policeman prosecuting any bus driver despite the violations. “If we prosecute every bus then it will lead to a traffic chaos,” said a traffic policemen of Baguiati traffic guard.
