Salt Lake accident spot plagued by potholes, bumps
Times of India | 13 November 2024
Kolkata: Potholes, bumps, protrusions and an ever-increasing gap between the road surface and pavement make the stretch of First Avenue near the entrance to Salt Lake, where Tuesday's accident took place, hazardous for pedestrians and bikers.
"The road here is extremely dangerous and poses a risk to bikers and pedestrians. Since the accident spot is closer to the traffic signal, many bikers tend to move ahead through small gaps on the left and come across the gaping holes and protrusions. They lose their balance and end up falling in front of other vehicles," said Biswanath Karmakar, who runs a stationery store next to the accident site.
TOI on Tuesday found the place where the accident took place has a 1.5-inch protrusion from the main surface owing to a steel cover where telecom optical fibre cables were laid beneath the surface. The portion of the road surrounding the metal structure also disintegrated.
On Tuesday, Noorjahan Paik tried to avoid the protrusion and veered slightly towards her right when her scooterette's handle hit a racing bus and she lost control of her vehicle. Her son, Ayush (11), was flung off the scooter. His head hit the bus, leading to his death.
"I can relate to her plight. Such potholes and protrusions are common in Salt Lake and we tend to avoid them so that we do not lose control of our bikes. The authorities should immediately take some steps to fix them," said Sangita Banerjee while driving past the accident site on Tuesday.
The width of the road where the accident took place is only 6.7 metres, making it difficult for a bus and a car to ply side by side. But motorists and daily passengers say buses regularly race along the stretch to reach Ultadanga before others and get a large chunk of passengers.
After the accident, TOI found a team of Bidhannagar Police and road engineers from Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation at the site, inspecting the road and potential danger points. "We have showcaused the agency that maintains the optical fibre cables in the area and are in charge of the maintenance of the steel structures. We have decided to cover the saucer drains between the road surface and the pavement for the time being to make the place safer for bikers. Also, we will be undertaking a thorough repair of the entire road surface along this stretch and bring it to the same level as that of the pavement," said a senior executive engineer of BMC.