A 65-year-old man was crushed under the wheels of a government run bus after it hit a two-wheeler near the Chingrighata intersection on EM Bypass on Monday afternoon, police said.
The accident happened around 1.15pm after the rider of the two-wheeler tried overtake the bus on Dhamakhali-Ghatakpur route from the left near Majherpara bus stop, the police said.
The rider and Haramohan Rajbanshi, the pillion rider, fell on the road after the bus hit them.
The bus’s rear wheels went over Rajbanshi, the police said.
A resident of Arabindapally in Rajarhat, Rajbanshi, who made a living by painting walls and iron grilles, was declared dead at a hospital in Salt Lake.
The bus driver fled. The police have seized the vehicle.
“According to onlookers, the rider of the two-wheeler landed on the blind spot of the bus while trying to overtake it from the left. The bus driver couldn’t spot the two-wheeler and hit it,” a senior officer of Beleghata traffic guard said.
Vehicles like buses have four blind spots — two on the left and right side of the driver’s cabin, the portion immediately below him and 10ft in the rear section.
Several road safety experts said the front danger zone extends 10 feet from the front of the bus and remains the most dangerous blind spot as the driver is not able to see if someone is crossing.
Similarly, the blind spot in the rear zone is also a challenge, with drivers unable to see anything between 10-12 feet behind the vehicle, they said.
Senior police officers said several fatal accidents involving buses and lorries occur after drivers fail to spot a vehicle on the left corner because of the blind spot.
Monday’s accident was because of the lack of the bus driver’s visibility, they added.
“The two-wheeler’s rider said he was a labour contractor and was headed towards Garia along EM Bypass when the accident occurred. Rajbanshi used to work for him,” said a senior officer of Bidhannagar South police station.
Immediately after the accident, a group of residents from Majherpara turned up at the spot and demanded that there should be more crackdowns against bus and lorry drivers who do not follow traffic rules and drive rashly on the Bypass, particularly during the afternoon.
“There aren’t enough officers at Chingrighata during the afternoon as the vehicle count on Bypass is relatively low during that time. This is when most accidents take place,” said a resident.