With BRO having deployed excavators, workers, trucks and bulldozers to clear the debris from the 120-metre stretch near Lohapool which had clogged part of the highway since intermittent rains began on July 5, one-way traffic movement has resumed at short intervals as vehicles sometimes line up for over 6-8 km distance on two sides, official sources said.
Vehicles are moving in day time only with road restoration work going on full swing.
To avoid the traffic snarl, many drivers are opting for the Lava, Kalimpong routes, which is taking three additional hours.
A senior official said "we have issued warnings to all concerned authorities of very heavy rains that are to follow in the weeks ahead."
"Continuous downpour has wreaked havoc at almost all eight of the BRO declared trouble spots along the NH-31A and with new slides and mud slips the situation became very unpredictable," he added.
Meanwhile the Met office predicted heavy rains in three districts in West Bengal including neighbouring Kalimpong and Darjeeling Hills.
