Police have proposed to the urban development department that the footpaths on either side of Bridge No. 4 in Park Circus be blocked permanently with iron guard rails to prevent pedestrians from landing on the carriageway meant for vehicles.

In a recent note, officers manning traffic movement along Bridge No. 4 have said that the footpath on the northern side of the bridge, which has a flight of steps connecting Park Circus railway station below, sees a huge footfall of passengers reaching the
station from the suburbs and both North and South-24 Parganas.

Most of these passengers take the stairs to reach the bridge and board autorickshaws or buses for their onward journeys.

“During the rush hours, most of these passengers end up landing on the carriageway meant for vehicular movement risking their lives,” said a senior police officer.

“Permanent guard rails will force these commuters to walk down the footpath to the nearest bus stop instead of trying to board buses from the middle of the bridge.”

The nearly kilometre-long Park Circus bridge stands over the railway tracks below and beneath the Parama flyover. It connects Darga Road on the west and Tiljala Road on the east, where autorickshaws and buses stop to pick up passengers.

Officers said the northern footpath is more frequented by commuters than the one in the south because of the flight of steps that connect the bridge to the railway station below.

“Several hundreds of daily passengers use the northern footpath of the bridge to take public transport for their onward journeys,” said another senior police officer of East traffic guard.

“We have urged the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) to repair the footpaths and set up permanent guard rails to prevent pedestrians from landing on the carriageway, thereby reducing road accidents.”

Officers said they used to face a similar problem with passengers reaching Ballygunge railway station.

A majority of these passengers would use stairs to land in the middle of the Bijon Setu, which connects Gariahat and Kasba, to take buses and autos.

The footpaths on either side of the Bijon Setu had to be covered with permanent guard rails to prevent indiscriminate movement of pedestrians.

At Park Circus station, a sizeable number of daily passengers reach Bridge No. 4 to head for small industrial units located in Tiljala and Tangra for their daily earnings, police said.

Senior officials in the KMDA said a preliminary examination of the footpaths along Bridge No. 4 has been conducted with the police in tow.

“There are several considerations, including how much additional weight the structure of the bridge bear needs to be assessed,” said a senior KMDA engineer.