Plying of heavy vehicles shuts down on Talla Bridge, diversions in place

Kolkata: The plying of vehicles above 3 tonnes has been banned on Talla Bridge from Sunday morning.

Though the police had made elaborate arrangements to inform the passengers and bus drivers, confusion prevailed among them over the changes that have been implemented from Sunday.

Talla Bridge is the most important connector between North Kolkata and Northern suburbs. Around 600 state-run and private buses used to ply along the bridge.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while inaugurating the Durga Puja at Barisha Club, said: "The bridge had been constructed more than 60 years ago and not a single document related to its construction could be traced. Arrangements have been made to ensure that people from Northern suburbs coming to the city do not face any difficulty."

Meanwhile, state PWD minister Aroop Biswas visited the bridge on Sunday morning, along with engineers of the department. He oversaw the arrangements made by the state Transport department, along with city and state police, to divert and curtail routes of buses.

Despite the new route details being sent to the bus syndicates, it was seen that the drivers had not been briefed about the same properly. On Sunday, several bus drivers were seen asking police personnel about which route they should avail.

To tackle the situation, additional police personnel comprising traffic constables and sergeants have been deployed there over the existing strength of Shyambazar traffic guard.

Sources informed that traffic police personnel will perform duty round-the-clock in shifts at some points such as Chiria More, Paikpara crossing on B T Road and Shyambazar five point crossing.

According to the diversion plan, maximum buses have been diverted from Chiria More via Seven Tanks, Northern Avenue, Belgachhia and R G Kar Road to reach Shyambazar. As R G Kar road is already crowded enough and traffic congestion occurs often, it is feared that from Monday, massive traffic snarl might occur during peak hours.

To divert buses and other goods vehicles above 3 tonnes, guardrails have been placed in several locations along with police personnel posted there. Primary guardrails have been placed in Shyambazar Five Point crossing. Following that, another set of guard rails have been placed just before the approach road of Talla Bridge, leaving small space for movement of vehicles under 3 tonnes. In the same manner, guardrails have been placed at Chiria More and Paikpara crossing on B T Road as well.