Second Hooghly Bridge to Remain Closed for 8 Hours Again on Sunday; What Are the Alternative Routes for Traffic?
IIE DIGITAL DESK : The Second Hooghly Bridge (Vidyasagar Setu) will once again remain closed for traffic for eight hours on the coming Sunday. According to a notification issued by the Kolkata Traffic Police on Thursday, the bridge will be shut from 6 am to 2 pm, and during this period all vehicular movement will be diverted through alternative routes.
The traffic advisory, vehicles coming from AJC Bose Road towards Vidyasagar Setu via Jirat Island will be redirected through Hastings Crossing, then via St. George’s Gate Road and Strand Road towards Howrah Bridge, or alternatively they may take a right turn from Hastings Crossing towards K.P. Road. Vehicles moving from K.P. Road towards Vidyasagar Setu via J&N Island will be diverted from 11 Furlong Gate to Hastings Crossing and then through St. George’s Gate Road and Strand Road to reach Howrah Bridge.
Similarly, vehicles coming via CGR Road from Khidirpur towards Vidyasagar Setu will be diverted from Hastings crossing, taking a left turn towards St. George’s Gate Road and Strand Road before reaching Howrah Bridge. Another alternative route for vehicles on K.P. Road heading towards Vidyasagar Setu via the Ghora Post Y-point ramp will be to take Red Road to reach Howrah Bridge.
Vidyasagar Setu, also known as the Second Hooghly Bridge, serves as one of the most important road links between Kolkata city and areas like Howrah and Santragachi. It is also crucial due to its proximity to the state administrative headquarters, Nabanna, with thousands of vehicles crossing the bridge daily, including both light and heavy traffic. The 823-metre-long cable-stayed bridge has now completed 27 years and is considered one of the longest cable-stayed bridges in India.
Experts have pointed out that key structural components such as stay cables, hold-down cables, deck slabs, and expansion joints have already crossed their expected service life of around 25 years, making replacement necessary. Keeping this in mind, the Hooghly River Bridge Commissioners (HRBC) had formed a specialised team of experts for maintenance work. The bridge has a total of 150 stay cables, and the initial phase of repair involves replacing these cables. Work has been ongoing for several weeks now.
The repeated Sunday closures have caused inconvenience to daily commuters, with many raising concerns over why such maintenance work cannot be carried out during night hours instead of daytime shutdowns.
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