A stretch of Jessore Road near the Nagerbazar crossing where traffic movement has been affected because of the construction of the flyover. Picture by Sanat Kumar Sinha

The traffic nightmare around the Nagerbazar crossing on Jessore Road is likely to continue into the next year with the agency building a flyover in the area set to miss the deadline.

The local Trinamul Congress-run South Dum Dum Municipality has stressed that Senbo must adhere to the October deadline but the civic body can do little to ease the problems of commuters if the agency fails to do so.

Work on the 2km flyover between Satgachhi and Gorabazar — expected to ease traffic congestion at the crossing — began in end-2008. Most of the stretch has been taken up for the project, severely disrupting traffic flow between Shyamnagar and Airport gate No. 1.

Even walking along the road is difficult with hawkers occupying the footpaths, especially near the crossing, and the carriageway narrowed because of the flyover work.

Bus routes have been altered to avoid the stretch and rickshaws and autorickshaws are the only transport options other than cars.

Thousands of residents from the area who commute by Metro are the worst hit. “To take the Metro either from Belgachhia or Dum Dum station we have to travel through Jessore Road. But as a part of it is closed, we are forced to take a convoluted route changing autorickshaws twice,” said Ananda Das, a resident of Teghoria.

Those who want to go from Gorabazar towards Belgachhia face the same problem. “We have to change autorickshaws twice to reach Belgachhia station and once to reach Dum Dum station. Earlier the two stations were a short bus journey away,” said Ashoke Majumder, a resident of Gorabazar.

He would have to wait at least three months after the October deadline expires for respite, according to Senbo.

The reason: the area is too congested for the agency to work during the day. “From dawn till night, the road is chock-a-block with people. Moreover, since the stretch is also the site of the local market, it is almost impossible to work at daytime. So we are working only at night,” said S. Roy, an official of the agency who is supervising the work.

It had been decided that machines, instead of labourers, would be used as much as possible to expedite the work. But “as hundreds of people, including children, use the road during the day, fatal accidents may take place while using machines”, added the official.

Another agency official blamed the “two-month delay” in shifting the bus stand from the Nagerbazar crossing for the project dragging on.

“We have informed the construction agency in writing that the work must be finished within the stipulated period. The road is a crucial link which commuters cannot use now because vehicles are being diverted,” said Anjana Rakshit, the chairperson of South Dum Dum municipality.

She did not specify what the civic body would do if the agency overshoots the deadline.