Balason Bailey Bridge to open to vehicular traffic from December 3
Dedicated police outpost has been set up to man the traffic on the bridge
DARJEELING: Bringing respite to commuters in Siliguri—the busy Balason Bridge is all set to be operational from 12:30 pm on Friday. A dedicated police outpost has been set up to man the traffic on the bridge.
“The Bailey Bridge is complete. Trial runs have also been completed successfully. The bridge will be opened to traffic from December 3, 12:30 pm but with certain restrictions,” stated Gaurav Sharma, Commissioner of Police, Siliguri Metropolitan Police. With the Bailey Bridge being nearly half the width (4.25m) of the original damaged bridge, to and fro traffic cannot be accommodated. It will be one side traffic in intervals. No goods carriers, Long distance buses, Volvo buses, 42-seater buses, rickshaws, rickshaw vans and e-rickshaws will be allowed. Military and para-military trucks and heavy vehicles will not ply through the bridge.
“The PWD has given us a stricture of carrying capacity upto 15 ton vehicles. Medium and light vehicles including passenger vehicles, two wheelers and three wheelers will be allowed to ply. School buses will also be allowed,” added the CP. As the height of the Bailey Bridge is 1.2 m from the ground foundation of the original bridge, a ramp of 12 m length has been built. Thus overloaded vehicles will also not be allowed.
“A Balason Traffic Outpost with 40 personnel headed by a Sub Inspector will man the bridge round the clock. 6 cctv cameras have been installed in addition to existing cams. 20 halogen lights have also been installed. An existing watch tower will also be used to keep vigil. No parking or loitering will be allowed to ensure smooth traffic flow,” added Sharma. Owing to incessant and torrential rains in the Darjeeling district, the 6th pillar of this bridge, that had been built in the 1960s was damaged badly. Surge in water level and current, the 6th pillar had tilted on October 20th this year. Not taking any chances, authorities immediately closed down the busy bridge connecting Matigara with SIliguri to vehicular traffic. They had to take a 7 km detour. Though pedestrians and two wheelers were allowed for some days after the damage, that too was stopped following an inspection by a team of engineers from Kolkata. It was then decided to replace the damaged part with a Bailey bridge.
Work started on November 8. Following the closure of the Jai Hind bridge in Kolkata in September 2018, the Bailey Bridge that connected Behala to Kidderpore, at present not in use, was dismantled and reassembled on the Balason Bridge.