The crumbling road network in Salt Lake continues to worsen. The craters offer a bone-jarring experience for commuters and the worn-out roads cause wheels to kick up dust, leading to a haze that lingers over residential blocks.

Road dust is one of the big contributors to the worsening air quality in Calcutta, an accompanying feature of winters in the city.

Several roads in Salt Lake have had their black top completely eroded. Potholes of varying sizes feature on nearly every major road and even on the lanes inside the blocks.

Disintegrated stone chips lie scattered over the roads with a thick layer of dust resting around the worn-out sections and craters. A wind of dust rises every time a vehicle drives down such stretches.

Loose gravel scattered on road surface poses danger to two-wheelers. The riders find it difficult to apply the brakes as the wheels tend to skid.

On Tuesday, the air quality monitoring station in Salt Lake run by the Central Pollution Board recorded “poor” air quality at 6pm. On Monday, the station recorded “poor” air at 6pm. On Sunday, the air quality was “satisfactory” at 6pm, while the reading at 11pm showed the air quality as “moderate”.

Trisha Nandi, a resident of EE block in Salt Lake, said she covered her face with a scarf to escape the dust whenever she stepped out. “I generally ride my scooter around the township for errands. I stopped taking it out last month after I fell while trying to avoid a large crater. Now, I take a rickshaw or walk. I always cover my mouth and nose because of the constant dust haze,” said Nandi.

Dust generated from broken roads impacts air quality. A drop in air quality can impact anyone but those with chronic lung and heart diseases or allergic rhinitis are more at risk, said doctors.

The Telegraph drove around the township last week.

A stretch of Second Avenue which connects Sector V with the Karunamoyee intersection is disfigured with craters and potholes on both the Sector V and the Karunamoyee-bound flanks.

The entire area below the elevated corridor of the East-West Metro line which passes by residential blocks such as DL, EE and ED, was enveloped in a cloud of dust. As vehicles lurched and struggled to drive through the battered stretch plumes of dust rose behind them.

Not far from Karunamoyee, a stretch of the Seventh Cross Road, that leads to water tank number 8, was full of craters of different sizes.

The entire flank of the road Opposite the CK Block children’s park has subsided with the top layer missing. The situation is similar for roads that lead towards AJ Block and AH Block near Baisakhi Island.

The deputy mayor of the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, Anita Mondal, also the mayoral council member in charge of road repairs, admitted that the roads in the township were in bad shape.

“We are aware that the roads are crumbling. We are carrying out patchwork repairs. However, the repairs did not last for a couple of weeks at several places. We will have a meeting with the contractors soon. Patchwork repairs too will be expedited,” shesaid.

Residents would want much more. Patchwork repairs are of little use, experience has taught them. They barely last a few months.