KMDA told to widen culvert on Bypass: Police find solution to Sector V exit jam
Telegraph | 31 May 2025
Police have asked the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) to extend a concrete culvert on the eastern flank of EM Bypass near the Chingrighata crossing so that Science City-bound vehicles get extra road space.
Vehicles from Sector V move slowly during peak hours, mainly in the evening, while taking a left turn from Salt Lake Bypass to EM Bypass because of a lack of enough road space.
Even after taking a left turn, the vehicles cannot move properly because the road takes a turn, and the size of the carriageway there is smaller compared to other stretches of the Bypass.
As a result, on most days, the tail of vehicles reaches up to Nicco Park, leaving motorists frustrated.
At a meeting held last week, senior officers of Kolkata Police urged their counterparts in the KMDA to widen the concrete culvert at Shantinagar, about 30m from Captain Bheri, by at least 3.5m.
This will accommodate more vehicles headed for Garia from the Chingrighata intersection on the Bypass, and the peak-hour congestion would be reduced significantly, the police said.
“The turn from Salt Lake Bypass to EM Bypass is critical. The buildings on the left have made it difficult to ensure a smooth left turn for the vehicles coming from Sector V and New Town,” a police officer said.
“We have proposed that if the width and the length of the existing concrete culvert are increased, vehicles can reach Captain Bheri faster. From Captain Bheri, the road flattens out and vehicles get to move at a normal speed.”
Police officers managing traffic at the Chingrighata crossing said that for vehicles arriving from Sector V and New Town along Salt Lake Bypass and taking a left turn remained a challenge, particularly during peak evening hours, for several reasons:
“Several IT companies have done away with work from home, and the number of personal vehicle users has gone up since the pandemic. As a result, more private cars and two-wheelers wait to take a left turn on EM Bypass to head towards Ruby,” a senior officer at Lalbazar said.
KMDA engineers said a proposal for widening the carriageway on the eastern flank of the Bypass close to Captain Bheri has been submitted for financial approval.
“It’s not just about widening a culvert but increasing the road space on the Bypass. It will take several months to complete this task once approved,” said a senior KMDA engineer.