ShashwatDRIVING YOUR OWN CAR IN KOLKATA IS A NIGHTMARE – ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE A TOURIST!
The City of Joy might be one of the most culturally fascinating places to exist in India – a delight for history enthusiasts, food lovers and whatnot – but when it comes to driving, it’s straight out chaotic!
So, after travelling almost 1100 kilometers with family just to explore this city existing in two eras – here I am to tell you all why driving in Kolkata can be your worst nightmare!
It is a test of patience and survival skills just to get into the city to your hotel!
Traffic moves unpredictably, one-way rules change without warning and parking is a luxury you’ll rarely find – even at the most famous places!
And if you think that’s not too bad – add to that a dissonant symphony of honking, pedestrians who do not care less if they live or die and buses that think themselves to be extra-grown autos which can stop whenever, wherever!
So, does that mean Kolkata as a city is not worth the struggle? Or should you find some other ways to explore it on your own? Let’s break it down!
1. Traffic Jams That Test Your Patience
Let’s talk about the jams first!
Kolkata’s traffic has a mind of its own – it moves at its own pace – slow, unpredictable and often like a complete standstill!
If you are used to driving in smooth highways or organized city roads – well, be ready for a completely unique experience.
Kolkata thinks it is one of the best traffic management in the country – and maybe that is the case since the locals are used to this.
But as a newbie traveling here with their own car – you will see that driving in Kolkata is not really a pretty good thing about the city.
Comparing to other metro cities in India, you’d know that traffic can be bad. But here, it gets worse!
With narrow streets, old tram lines and an overwhelming mix of cars, bikes and buses – getting from one place to another can take twice the time.
And the rules are such that even if you think your destination is just a right turn away – you will be stopped by the Kolkata Traffic Uniforms – demanding fines (not in a very legal way).
“You cannot take turns, you need to go straight into some alley – so that there’s no jam!” WHAT?
Some times you can take a U-turn, other times you cannot! FOR REAL!
Even if you get time to figure out these weird-a** rules – there’s another adventure waiting for you – THE MICRO JAMS!
Caused by random bus stoppages, rickshaws blocking lanes and other unimaginably annoying things.
If you’re not used to this chaotic rhythm, be prepared for a test of patience like never before. 🚗🚦
2. The One-Way Rule That Changes Like Magic
If you somehow managed the first adventure of driving in Kolkata and visited the incredible places around – be ready for one of the most memorable experiences in driving history ever – the everchanging one-way roads!
Have you seen Harry Potter? Remember those magical stairs which would change and move randomly? That is Kolkata Roads for you, more or less!
These roads are like an unsolvable puzzle which changes throughout the day.
A road that allows traffic in both directions in the morning, would suddenly turn into a one-way street past 1.00pm! And there won’t be a single sign to warn you.
But wait, it gets worse. When both sides of the road turn one-way, traffic from every direction is flowing in the same direction. And guess what? You’re just supposed to go with the flow, no questions asked.
AND AND AND – if you want to make a turn in this chaotic mess, you first need to be on the side of the road where the turn is allowed! Does that make sense to you? Because it certainly doesn’t to me!
And if you try to go with the flow – you can be taking a massive detour or worse – getting fined!
If you are a local – it is not a big deal for you and you might think that this is all some stupid, hateful commentary – but for tourists – it’s the purest form of confusion and frustration!
3. Parking? Good Luck With That!
Now, moving on with the points to why driving in Kolkata can be insane for an outsider, comes the next challenge, PARKING!
Imagine you made it out without fines through the chaos of the city traffic – towards your destination of the day.
But where would you now park your car?
Most streets in the city are full of already parked local vehicles, leaving little to no space for you!
The most messed up places for parking your car would be the New Market, College Street and near the Ghats!
If you happen to visit these areas, be ready for a full circle around for an hour – or to end up parking kilometers away!
Most famous places do not have a parking zone – you’d need to find one before you get to enjoy the exploration.
And no doubt that the places in the city are incredible, fascinating and so much more – but the frustration of the streets and parking – gets over your head and you cannot fully enjoy anything.
If you get to do parking in a safe spot – the charges are too high sometimes – but you need to manage!
Also, even if you spot a spot where local cars are parked and think your car will be safe there, think again. The authorities seem to have an uncanny way of knowing when a non-local car is parked, and before you know it, you’ll find yourself slapped with a fine!
It felt like the officials at every stop we made were just waiting for a vehicle with a non-local plate to pull over, ready to hand out illegal fines at every opportunity! We ran into this twice during our trip.
At one point, we even told them, “Go ahead and fine us officially—take a photo, upload it, and we’ll pay the fine.” But instead of going that route, they refused and tried to scare us with threats like, “Your car won’t be able to move forward.” It felt like a complete power play!
When you’re in a remote area, there’s not much you can do except make polite requests, right? It’s frustrating when you’re at their mercy!
4. Autos, Buses, and Pedestrians—The Unstoppable Trio
You know the best thing about Kolkata roads? THEY ARE FOR EVERYONE!
🚶 Pedestrians who cross wherever and whenever they want.
🛺 Auto-rickshaws that weave through gaps you didn’t even know existed.
🚲 Cycle rickshaws moving at their own slow pace.
🚌 Buses that stop in the middle of the road without warning.
So, driving in Kolkata means constantly dodging these over-excited vehicles that swerve all over the small routes without warning!
Unlike other cities where traffic follows a system, Kolkata’s roads are ruled by an unpredictable rhythm that only locals understand.
All of this chaos happens all at the same time on narrow streets where space itself is a luxury!
It is like a constant game of navigating, anticipating and sometimes reacting to what all happens in a few kilometers!
If you are not used to this unique management of the roads in the city – you will quickly realize that being on the road here requires much more than just driving skills – and that is some mental agility!
5. The Bribe Trap: Out-of-State Drivers Beware
If you are planning to visit the marvelous city (except the traffic) on your own, with you own non-local number plate vehicle – think more than twice!
The Kolkata Police officers (not all but the ones we had experience with) seem to have a habit of flagging down cars from other states (especially from UP and Uttarakhand, as per a local) – accusing them of violations like going the wrong way or not taking a U-turn properly.
They will often stop you and cite vague reasons like “it’s a one way road now” or “you missed a sign”.
More than anything else, our Kolkata journey was full of “fine bharna padega” and “gaadi me kaata maar dega“.
And even if you try to explain you are a traveler and did not know of these changing rules, they’d straight out ask you for fines or bribes!
While I am aware that this happens everywhere – it feels as if targeting outsider vehicles is a norm here!
What’s the Alternative?
But does this all mean Kolkata is not worth exploring? Not one bit!
The city is amazing – from the monuments to the food and the culture. It is all very unique, like you haven’t witnessed before.
The city is like two eras packed into one – with a slow paced vibe in a technologically driven world!
Right from the first glimpse, you can imagine why people say that this is a city which seems to be straight out of a retro world!
It’s artistic, it’s colorful, it’s sweet, it’s wonderful and everything people say about this city is true!
But only if you are traveling through the local transports!
So the best alternative to not feel the chaos of the city and be frustrated in such a wonderous place – is to ditch the car and use public transport!
Kolkata has a marvelous system when it comes to transport – from metro to yellow taxis to app-based cabs and the buses, even.
If you are not traveling in your own vehicle, you will never know the chaos happening through these roads – and can enjoy Kolkata just as it is. With only good vibes and souvenirs to take back home.
Final Thoughts
Even though the first interaction with the city for us went completely on the wrong tracks – the city did charm us as the days moved forward.
From the massive greenery and history around Victoria Palace, the peace and silence inside the Cathedral to the advancements in the New Town area – and how can one forget the local food and the incredible Biryani – there were many things that did give us a memorable experience!
Are you in Kolkata right now? How’s your experience been so far? Let me know in the comments!
That’s All Folks!
