The space under culverts along EM Bypass, which have gone out of use as the water that flowed through them has dried up, will be converted into underpasses for pedestrians to go from one side of the artery to the other, the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) has decided.
One such culvert, near Kalikapur, has already been converted into an underpass. “It will remain open from 9am till 10pm every day from Tuesday,” said an engineer of the CMDA.
The CMDA wants to convert three more culverts — near the Ruby crossing, near Panchannagram and near the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute.
EM Bypass had water bodies on its two sides but as the city expanded, these were filled up. The culverts, which were constructed to connect the water bodies on two sides of the road, have since lost their use.
The filling of the water bodies, which acted as sinks during heavy rain, is blamed for the frequent flooding of neighbourhoods along the Bypass during the monsoon.
“These culverts were built along with the EM Bypass to connect water bodies on both sides of the road. The water bodies have been filled over the years as buildings came up along the Bypass,” the CMDA engineer said.
“We are now planning to use the space under such culverts as underpass to help pedestrians cross the Bypass from east to west or vice versa,” said the engineer.
After the flow of the water stopped, the CMDA built walls or dumped soil under the culverts in some places. The walls, wherever they exist, have to be pulled down and the soil removed.
The space also needs to be repaired before they are opened for pedestrian movement, the engineer said.
“We have plans to make three more underpasses soon — near Panchannagram, near the Ruby crossing and near SRFTI. These spots are crucial crossover points for pedestrians,” said the engineer.
He said that altogether 19 culverts on the Bypass have become defunct, but the CMDA does not intend to convert all into underpasses immediately.
The ones that are close to important junctions, where a lot of people cross the Bypass, will be converted into underpasses now. The conversion will cost about Rs 2 crore in each case, said the engineer.
The stretch of the Bypass between Ultadanga and Science City was built in the 1970s, said a CMDA official. The road was then extended till the Ruby crossing in the mid-1980s, and up to Ajoynagar in the early 1990s.
In first decade of this century, the artery was extended till Patuli. Later, it was stretched till the Kamalgazi crossing.
The Bypass now has four underpasses — at the Hyatt crossing, at the Beleghata crossing, near Science City and near Kalikapur.
