Speeding, overtaking at will, ignoring traffic signals and stopping in the middle of the road for people to board or get off - buses in Calcutta are a law unto themselves, passengers their unwilling allies and police mere spectators.

Five students of South City International School were injured on Tuesday morning when their school bus crashed into a private bus that had stopped in the middle of the Bypass to pick up passengers, a punishable offence that drivers routinely commit without being prosecuted.

Metro hit the road on three consecutive days after that near-tragedy, criss-crossing the city to highlight how Calcuttans are forced to risk life and limb every day to travel on buses whose drivers have been bred on a culture of unbridled anarchy.

Bypass, opposite Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals

Tuesday, 11.30 am: A bus screeches to a halt in the middle of the road, triggering a cacophony of honking behind him. The driver, of course, cares a hoot. The conductor beckons passengers standing by the roadside even as other vehicles steer left or right, depending on their position in the constellation of chaos.

A girl in blue jeans and red top sprints to avoid being run over. She boards the bus safely but looks sheepish glaring at the vehicle that came close to hitting her. She will possibly soon forget what might have happened if she gets a seat for all the trouble she took.

Almost every bus stops in front of Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals but that isn't the problem. The problem is that they stop in their tracks, just like the private bus into which a school bus crashed a few hours earlier. It doesn't help that there is no designated bus stop there.

Police presence: The closest police deployment is in front of Hyatt Regency, around 100 metres from where the accident occurred.

Ruby rotary on the Bypass

Wednesday, 1.30pm: Multiple signage with "buses will not stop here" are visible at the crossing but buses stop right in front of them, often in parallel lanes. The designated bus stop, barely 30 metres away in front of the public vehicles department's office, is deserted. Buses don't even slow down there.

At the Ruby rotary, a man dodges a bus and a taxi to board an airport-bound air-conditioned bus that has stopped in the middle of the road. As he waits for the automatic door to open, a speeding motorcycle comes close to knocking him down.

The driver of AC 37B, his foot slowly easing on the brake pedal, tells Metro from his perch: "I know this isn't a bus stop but what can I do if passengers wait here? I stopped the car to the right of the road because I didn't want to be in the queue behind other buses to the left of the road."

Police presence: There are three police kiosks in the vicinity but nobody to stop bus passengers from standing right at the crossing or to book anyone for flouting traffic rules. "Passengers refuse to walk till the bus stop," says a sergeant, washing his hands of the violations.

Old Court House Street

Wednesday, 3.30pm: Guardrails mark the bus bay in front of the The Lalit Great Eastern and the stretch between Governor House and RR Avenue. But buses plying south from Dalhousie ignore the bus bays at will. There are no designated bus stops along the stretch between Dalhousie and Governor House either. Buses slow down in front of the star hotel to pick up and drop passengers, often in the middle of the road.

A man in a blue shirt seems to know that his bus (route 7A) wouldn't halt at the designated bus stop. He stands in the heart of traffic, waving at the bus driver and hopping in while the vehicle is still in motion. Other passengers waiting at the bus stop follow him, sprinting across the road.

Police presence: Traffic sergeants and constables at all the crossings - in front of The Lalit Great Eastern, Governor House and RR Avenue - witness the violations but do little to stop them.

JL Nehru Road, in front of Metro cinema

Wednesday, 3pm: Speeding buses screech to a halt anywhere they wish to pick up or drop passengers and nobody seems to care until an accident occurs.

"We have to board or get off buses in the middle of the road every single day. It's scary but we don't have a choice. Buses just won't stop near the edge of the road so that people can alight safely," rues Adrija Mukherjee, a 27-year-old resident of Howrah.

Since there is no designated bus stop in the area, it's a free-for-all. Accelerate, overtake, stop and speed away again, jumping lanes and traffic signals without any fear of the police.

Police presence: An outpost crammed with cops stands on one side of the road but nobody is deployed in front of Metro cinema, where the maximum violations take place. When Metro points this out to a sergeant, he promises to send a colleague to that spot straightaway. Fifteen minutes later, there is still no policeman in sight there.

Rashbehari Avenue, near Kalighat Metro station

Wednesday, 12.30pm: Autorickshaws block part of the left lane and buses stop wherever their drivers want to, choking the busy crossing. At least four buses zip past, snapping at each other's wheels like on a racing track.

Not one bus halts at the designated bus stop near the Khadim's shoestore. People waiting for transport seem to be aware that they don't stand a chance getting on a bus if they are rooted to the bus stop. So whenever a bus slows down for a passenger or two to alight, a few more clamber up after walking to the middle of the road, a hand raised for traffic to brake.

Accidents are common on the stretch between Kalighat Metro station and Lake Market but, as in the rest of Calcutta, the freedom to flout overrides the right to life.

Police presence: A sergeant alerted by a Metro photographer recording the violations suddenly starts hauling up bus drivers for speeding and stopping in the middle of the road. "There have been two fatal accidents on this stretch in the past three days. We have started a drive against speed," he claims.

Beleghata crossing, Bypass

Wednesday, 1.30pm: Buses pick up passengers right in front of the signage that reads: "Buses won't stop here". The designated bus stop with a shed for passengers is barely 30 metres away but almost deserted.

Police presence: Two traffic cops are on duty at the crossing but neither buses nor passengers care much for them. The light turns green but a procession of buses stops right after getting past the traffic signal, creating a bottleneck that the cops don't bother clearing. Some people run down the road to board these buses, adding to the chaos.

"No matter how hard we try to stop them, people will stand here to catch buses. We are tired of telling them not to do so. And when buses see potential passengers, they will stop anyway," says one of the policeman, seemingly satisfied that he had sealed the argument.

So what are they doing there if people don't listen to them? Metro saw the cops stopping cars and motorcycles to check their papers.

Ultadanga, Bidhannagar station and near Hudco crossing

Wednesday, 3pm: This is one place where you can't blame the buses for stopping in the middle of the road because autorickshaws are parked where the bus stop is! Autorickshaws block almost the entire length of the left flank, right from Capital Electronics till the entrance of Bidhannagar railway station. "Do I have a choice? I have to get off wherever my bus stops," says Gautam Halder, on his way back home.

There is an air-conditioned bus stop down the road that enters Salt Lake from the Hudco crossing but it is of little use. From the foot of the Ultadanga bridge to the turn of the road leading to the Bypass, the entire stretch is a bus, taxi and auto stop rolled into one. An elderly man gets off a bus and a family with a suitcase boards an air-conditioned bus bang in the middle of the road.

Police presence: Traffic cops say fines are of little use. "Even if we slap fines, bus drivers produce the receipts and get back the money from the owners," an officer said.

Central Avenue, near Calcutta Medical College and Hospital

Wednesday, 4.30pm: The bus stop 30 metres from the Colootola Street crossing is vacant. A group of passengers is waiting in front of the School of Tropical Medicine, almost at the crossing, to board buses.

"Most people stand here, so it makes sense to stand where buses are more likely to halt than wait at the designated bus stop. If my bus doesn't stop there, I will be delayed," said G. Mondal, waiting to catch a bus to Jadavpur.

Police presence: Traffic police are there within a radius of 50 metres but do buses pay any heed.

Who is to blame for the entire city turning into a bus stop? Tell ttmetro@abpmail.com