Geragenda Bridge: Heavy vehicle ban leads to traffic snarl

Alipurduar: A sudden ban on heavy vehicles at the Geragenda River bridge on Asian Highway 48 near Birpara triggered massive traffic congestion on Thursday, crippling a key route connecting North Bengal with the Northeast.

The restriction, enforced from 3 am without prior notice, was imposed to speed up ongoing repairs on the bridge, which was damaged by a flash flood on May 31 when one of its mid-pillars sank. The abrupt suspension of heavy vehicle movement led to long queues of trucks, buses and goods carriers stretching for several kilometres on both sides of AH-48.

Traffic pressure spilled into Falakata town in Alipurduar district, causing severe gridlock on National Highway 17/D. Police diverted vehicles from Dhupguri toward Falakata, but the alternate route quickly became overwhelmed, leaving thousands of drivers and passengers stranded for hours.

The Geragenda Bridge is a crucial link between Bengal and the “Seven Sister” states, making the disruption particularly impactful for the movement of essential goods and commercial cargo.

Drivers expressed strong frustration over the lack of prior announcement, saying they could have taken alternative routes if informed earlier.

Asian Highway Authorities’ Executive Engineer Ramen Mondal said: “Repair work is underway and the temporary restriction was necessary to complete the work quickly. Once repairs are finished, traffic flow will return to normal.”

Birpara Police Station OC Nayan Das added: “If we are informed in advance about temporary traffic restrictions, it would greatly reduce the problems.”