End of road for bus route no. 3, once a lifeline between Serampore and Bagbazar
Times of India | 19 December 2024
Kolkata: Bus route 3, a symbol of Kolkata and Serampore's rich legacy, has walked into the sunset. The final bus service from Serampore to Dakshineswar (a curtailed journey), which started way back in 1927, made its last ceremonial journey on Tuesday. The main services, which originally operated between Bagbazar and Serampore, had stopped during Jagaddhatri .
Sudip Goswami alias Babuda, who has been operating the lone bus on this route for the past five years, said he had to take the decision with a heavy heart. "I have been associated with this route for 40 years. Despite being the bus owner, I was the conductor myself just to ensure the route did not die. For five years, I paid the driver Rs 700 per day and took nothing in return. But ever since Covid, it was a struggle. The past four months were the worst. I was making four trips a day but not making beyond Rs 1,200-Rs 1,500 a day. My driver kept saying he wanted to join another route (285) and I finally had to let him go," said Goswami.
Though his bus will be scrapped in 2026, Goswami said he will not shift to another route. "Route 3 is in my blood. So I wished to see this route cross 100 years. I am hoping someone will come forward and save this route," said Goswami, who will now join the alternative business run by his two sons.
Many expressed their angst on the development and delved into the reason for the end of road for the route. "The dominance of totos has created a crisis in public transport like buses. People no longer prefer taking buses for short distances. As a result, the bus business is suffering. Despite multiple reports to the district administration from the transport department, nothing is happening," claimed Sayntan Chatterjee, a Dakshineswar resident who took this bus as a child to his maternal uncle's residence at Bagbazar.
Kolkata-Bus-o-Pedia, the largest bus group in Bengal with around 2.7 lakh followers, posted a message on their Facebook page asking for patrons to revive the route. "With a heavy heart, we bid farewell to Route 3. The final bus has now made its last journey, a bus route that proudly operated for almost a century. Route 3 was never just a bus; it was an iconic route. At its peak, it had a fleet strength of 69 that served as the lifeline of the city's daily commuters," said a member of the group.
The legacy of Route 3 goes beyond the daily commute. During the devastating floods of the 1970s, while all other bus routes were suspended, Route 3 continued to operate. Kolkata's residents would often say, "Baan ba Bonna ese jaag, 3 number er chaka kono din thambena" — a testament to the route's reliability. Whether it was the early morning commuters, the students heading to school, or the office-goers starting their work day, Route 3 was the common thread that tied them all together," it stated.
"Though Route 3's buses may no longer run, the legacy it leaves behind will never be forgotten. It will live on in the stories of the countless passengers who once travelled its route, in the memory of the bustling streets it crossed, and in the hearts of those who rode it for so many years," said Saurav Mukherjee, a moderator of the group.
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