Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation has repaired the northern stretch of Strand Road that connects Posta with Nimtala in the north, paving the way for this 1.3-km route to act as a viable alternative to CR Avenue. KMC said it has been converted into a bituminous concrete stretch with proper road markings.
The Kolkata traffic police had long been requesting KMC to repair the road the top layer of which had to be peeled off and a new coat of bitumen applied. Following the relaying of the top layer, police have now plans to remove the illegal parking on this route and try and use it as a viable alternative for trucks entering the city from Nivedita Setu.
“The whole idea is to decongest the CR Avenue, especially at night when trucks use this route to travel to and from the city after Vidyasagar Setu was shut down. If we can split the pressure on the CR Avenue and APC Road further, it will help ease the traffic flow. Also, Posta trucks will need to travel a shorter distance,” said an officer.
Police also plan to actively push for sending north-bound vehicles from Howrah station to this route during off-peak hours.
Earlier, traffic police officers met KMC roads department officials and the agencies jointly inspected the road. Cops had provided evidence on why this stretch had become uneven — certain spots where equipment had been set up during the demolition work of Posta flyover were the worst-affected and deep craters developed there following rain.
Traffic cops said running loaded trucks on such a stretch was inviting accidents and frequent break-downs. They also pointed out that at least 20-odd street light posts had been uprooted for the work along with multiple CCTV cameras fixed to these posts.
KMC said it has worked on all these aspects. “The road has been levelled and the average speed in the past two weeks is higher than on normal days despite traffic pressure gradually going up,” said a KMC official. The police said they will also finish setting up new CCTV cameras by the end of this week.
The Kolkata traffic police had long been requesting KMC to repair the road the top layer of which had to be peeled off and a new coat of bitumen applied. Following the relaying of the top layer, police have now plans to remove the illegal parking on this route and try and use it as a viable alternative for trucks entering the city from Nivedita Setu.
“The whole idea is to decongest the CR Avenue, especially at night when trucks use this route to travel to and from the city after Vidyasagar Setu was shut down. If we can split the pressure on the CR Avenue and APC Road further, it will help ease the traffic flow. Also, Posta trucks will need to travel a shorter distance,” said an officer.
Police also plan to actively push for sending north-bound vehicles from Howrah station to this route during off-peak hours.
Earlier, traffic police officers met KMC roads department officials and the agencies jointly inspected the road. Cops had provided evidence on why this stretch had become uneven — certain spots where equipment had been set up during the demolition work of Posta flyover were the worst-affected and deep craters developed there following rain.
Traffic cops said running loaded trucks on such a stretch was inviting accidents and frequent break-downs. They also pointed out that at least 20-odd street light posts had been uprooted for the work along with multiple CCTV cameras fixed to these posts.
KMC said it has worked on all these aspects. “The road has been levelled and the average speed in the past two weeks is higher than on normal days despite traffic pressure gradually going up,” said a KMC official. The police said they will also finish setting up new CCTV cameras by the end of this week.