The widened three-point crossing at Garia, constructed at Rs 2 crore to ease bottlenecks in south Calcutta, is ready for traffic, but the Citu-backed autorickshaw union has thrown a spanner in its inauguration plan.

Refusing to let go of the traffic facilitator without a share in it, autorickshaw owners affiliated to the Citu have demanded space for a parking lot.

The stretch has been widened to 180 metres and divided into three lanes — two for traffic and the third for parking the private cars of those who drop in at the nearby market complex.

“More than 500 autorickshaw owners want to park their vehicles in the third lane. That would rob the private vehicles of parking space and defeat the entire purpose of the project,” said Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) chief executive officer Alapan Bandopadhyay.

“We had planned to flag off the widened stretch in mid-February. But with the auto operators opposing the move, it has been stalled. All the autos cannot be accommodated, but we are trying to make arrangements,” he added. The project, taken up by the CMDA in October 2003, was completed in February.

Humayun Kabir, deputy superintendent of police (town), South 24-Parganas, said: “The problem with the autorickshaw union has to be sorted out at the earliest to ensure optimum utilisation of road space. Nearly 3,000 autos and buses ply through this junction on 30 different routes. And each vehicle takes nearly half an hour to travel the 500-metre-stretch.”

General secretary of Autorickshaw Operators Union Kishore Ghosh said it was unfair on the part of the district authorities to not allot a parking space for autos. “Where will the autos go if they are not provided with parking space?” asked chairman of Borough 11 Biren Ghosh.