Vehicles Crawled for Hours After Car Breakdown; Questions Raised on Administration’s Preparedness
Bhagalpur: The traffic system on the Vikramshila Setu collapsed once again on Monday morning. A car suddenly broke down in the middle of the bridge, leading to a long queue of vehicles and bringing traffic to a complete standstill. Due to this hours-long gridlock, office-goers, ambulances carrying patients, and school children faced immense hardship. The situation was aggravated by temporary dividers on the bridge, which made it impossible for other vehicles to overtake the broken-down car.
Morning Commute and a 'Traffic Hell'
On Monday morning, as people were heading to work and offices, a car suddenly broke down and stopped in the middle of the bridge around 9:30 AM. Immediately after the car stalled, a long line of vehicles formed behind it. Since temporary dividers and barricades have been installed on the bridge due to ongoing repair work, heavy vehicles and other cars coming from behind could not overtake the stalled vehicle. In no time, the jam spread to both ends of the bridge—towards Barari and Naugachia—stretching for several kilometers.
Dividers as Obstacles: Nowhere to Go
Local commuters stated that the width of the bridge is already restricted, and the temporary dividers have made the road even narrower. Monday's incident proved that if even a minor technical failure occurs on the bridge, the entire traffic system collapses. Sharing his experience, a passenger trapped in the jam said, "Crawling on the bridge has become a compulsion. Until the administration deploys cranes or a permanent Quick Response Team (QRT) here, the public will not get relief from this hell."
Prompt Action by TOP Police
Upon receiving information about the jam, the Traffic Out Post (TOP) police team swung into action. Pushing through the gridlock with great difficulty, the police reached the spot. Using a crane, they moved the broken-down car to the side of the road, after which traffic was gradually restored. However, this process took nearly an hour and a half, during which thousands of passengers suffered in the heat and humidity.
Are Administrative Plans Inadequate?
Given the increasing traffic jams on the Vikramshila Setu, the administration had recently made several promises, including strengthening ferry services and deploying cranes. Despite this, Monday's incident has raised several serious questions:
Lack of Quick Response: Are there enough cranes and tow-vans deployed at both ends of the bridge? The police struggled to move the car on Monday, indicating that resources are falling short.
The Logic of Temporary Dividers: Is there a design flaw in these dividers that prevents traffic from overtaking? Experts believe that the lack of 'emergency gaps' between dividers is the primary cause of this problem.
Failure of Traffic Management: During peak hours like Monday morning, when construction work is already ongoing, why is additional police force not deployed?
Public Demand: Permanent Solution is the Only Way
The citizens of Bhagalpur believe that until the new truss bridge or a second bridge at Vikramshila Setu is fully ready, 'stop-gap' arrangements will not suffice. Systems like 24/7 patrolling teams, emergency crane services, and providing traffic updates via loudspeakers should be implemented immediately.
According to administrative sources, following the incident, the District Police have once again instructed the agency maintaining the bridge to ensure the availability of a crane every 500 meters. Additionally, plans to provide gaps in the dividers are being considered so that vehicles can be moved to the side in case of a breakdown.
Monday's incident was not just about a car breaking down; it was a pointer to the weak link of the Vikramshila Setu, which is costing lakhs of people their precious hours every single day.
