West Bengal has inaugurated a live traffic control room in Salt Lake to monitor roads across the state, with the system expected to track congestion, illegal parking and other traffic-related problems from Kolkata to Darjeeling. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari inaugurated the facility on Friday and announced a public helpline for traffic complaints.
According to the report, the control room will allow officials in Salt Lake to monitor roads across West Bengal in real time. The announcement comes amid concerns over deliberately created traffic congestion at night, although the report did not identify those allegedly responsible or provide details of any investigation.
The system is also intended to support monitoring of roads where illegal activities, including roadside waste dumping and unauthorised parking, are reported to be causing public inconvenience. The chief minister said traffic conditions at locations including Farakka, Palsit, Dankuni and the Dhulagarh checkpost required attention, and personally reviewed these points, according to the report.
The administration is considering stronger traffic checkposts and additional deployment of traffic personnel at locations where congestion is a recurring concern. Where it is not possible to deploy more personnel, the government plans to use automated traffic systems, the report said. No specific technology, installation schedule or budget for the proposed automated systems was provided.
A helpline, 18003458922, has been launched for residents facing problems related to road congestion. The chief minister also said that a WhatsApp number would be introduced later. The report did not specify the operating hours of the helpline, the department responsible for responding to complaints or the response time citizens can expect.
The control room’s proposed remit extends beyond Kolkata and the Salt Lake area. The chief minister also raised concerns about congestion in the hills, where he said inadequate parking arrangements had resulted in parking on 60% of roads. The report did not clarify whether this figure refers to a particular town, road network or survey.
The government plans to develop parking arrangements in the hills in accordance with local terrain and environmental conditions. District magistrates in Darjeeling and Kalimpong have been instructed to work with the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration under rules associated with Border Roads extensions, according to the report.
Adhikari is scheduled to visit the hills on October 7, when the parking and congestion issues may be discussed further. The immediate test for the Salt Lake control room will be whether live monitoring leads to faster identification of bottlenecks, more coordinated enforcement and a clear response mechanism for complaints from road users.
