Chock-a-block Kolkata gets 17k more vehicles in first 2 months of year
Times of India | 16 March 2025
Kolkata has experienced a record surge in new vehicle registrations, with 16,975 vehicles added in the first two months of 2025 KOLKATA: The first two months of the year have seen a record number of vehicles getting added to Kolkata's already-choked roads, exacerbating its traffic woes.
Jump over 2023 number
A total of 16,975 new vehicles were registered in the city's four regional transport offices in Jan-Feb, over a thousand more than the count for the same period in 2024 and 3,000 more than that in Jan-Feb 2023. The 21.5% increase over three years is driven largely by personalised vehicles, underlining the shift away from public transportation.
Experts say the the surge, which is even greater than the pre-Covid peak level of 2019, reflects a decaying of the city's once-robust public transport system. "Trams remain largely discontinued, buses are being phased out without replacements, and infra development is prioritising private vehicles over mass transit," said mobility expert Anumita Roychowdhury of Centre for Science and Environment.
Transport officials say the shift to private mobility raises concerns about long-term urban congestion and sustainability. "Once a model public transport city, Kolkata now risks the fate of Delhi and Bengaluru, where traffic snarls persist despite greater road space. This signals an urgent need to rethink urban mobility strategies before congestion spirals out of control," said A K Das, a former transport department chief traffic and transportation engineer.
Steady rise in registration at Beltala, Behala PVDs
At the centrally located PVD Beltala, new vehicle registrations for Jan jumped 48% over the same month 2023. For Behala RTO, the Jan registrations jump over 2023 was even higher at 55%. Behala has, in fact, witnessed a steady increase in vehicle registrations, with Jan figures rising from 765 in 2023 to 962 in 2024 and 1,189 in 2025. Feb also showed consistent growth, moving from 676 in 2023 to 851 in 2024 and 913 in 2025, suggesting a gradual rise in new vehicle ownership in this region.
The Kasba RTO, interestingly, bucked the trend with the number of new registrations in both Jan and Feb dipping. January registrations climbed from 1,777 in 2023 to 2,039 in 2024 but dropped to 1,957 in 2025. February figures, too, moved from 1,656 in 2023 to 1,767 in 2024 before declining to 1,627 in 2025
Salt Lake, another key RTO, exhibited strong growth in January with registrations increasing from 1,771 in 2023 to 2,302 in 2024 and 2,343 in 2025. However, February figures dipped from 2,302 in 2023 to 2,024 in 2024 to 1,878 in 2025.