CHENNAI: It has been months since the north-bound buses are being operated from the new Madhavaram bus terminus. But still there is inadequate public transport connectivity from many parts of the city to the Madhavaram bus terminus. This is forcing the commuters to shell out money to cabs or take at least two buses to reach the new bus terminus.
The new bus terminus at Madhavaram was built and opened for use last October. To de-congest the Koyambedu bus terminus, the buses operating to northern areas like Andhra Pradesh, were shifted to the new bus terminus. But what the authorities failed to do was improve the connectivity to the Madhavaram bus terminus by operating adequate number of local buses.
The MTC currently operates four bus routes from the Broadway and Koyembedu bus depot.”I had to come through Broadway to reach here. Earlier, it was a direct bus to Koyembedu. But now I have to shift two buses from the city to reach the new depot,” says Satish, a passenger travelling to Tirupathi. Route numbers A57 and 57F from Broadway and route numbers 114 and 121 from Koyembedu, are the buses which connect Madhavaram to the core areas of the City.
“Earlier, it took me only Rs 15 rupees to reach the depot. But, now it is costing me more than Rs 30 while my ticket to Tirupathi is around Rs 100,” adds Satish. The lack of public transport facilities is forcing passengers to depend on private transport options such as cabs or autorickshaws.
“The cab charges were more than Rs 250. The ticket to Nellore is Rs 200. I am paying more for my cab than the bus,” says Manoj Kumar, a passenger to Nellore.
As the auto and share auto drivers know that there are no alternatives, they are overcharging for the rides, according to a few passengers. Speaking to Express, P R Rajendran, MD MTC, says,” There are no new routes planned till now. If we get more complaints in the future, we will introduce new buses according to the feasibility.”