CHENNAI: A public interest litigation petition has been filed in the Madras High Court alleging road obstruction in Ashok Nagar and KK Nagar areas due to the construction of public toilets, Amma canteens, workshops, electrical junction boxes and illegal parking of motor vehicles encroaching onto the roads.
The petition was filed by advocate VBR Menon. He sought orders to the authorities concerned to relocate such structures to free the roads and pavements of obstruction which inconveniences the commuters, particularly school-going children.
When it came up for hearing on Thursday, the first bench of Acting Chief Justice R Mahadevan and Justice Mohammed Shaffiq observed that road obstruction is a major issue and directed the Greater Chennai Corporation to file a reply to the petition within two weeks.
The petitioner alleged that the obstructions on the road and the pavements have left very little or no space for pedestrians, and the problem has aggravated significantly in the past few years due to the steep increase of multi-storeyed buildings.
Moreover, the carriageway on the roads has substantially narrowed due to the construction of raised platforms on both sides for separate cycle tracks and wide footpaths during 2015-16. Despite submitting a petition in 2016, no noticeable action was taken in the last seven years to mitigate the woes of commuters, he said.
Menon recalled that Ashok Nagar and KK Nagar were developed as model residential areas in the 1960s with excellent foresight for the future with broad roads, playing areas, parks and several schools. Even though the construction of stormwater drains and the planting of trees reduced the road space, the leftover width was quite sufficient till early 2000 for pedestrians and motorists to move smoothly.
The cycle tracks and pavements have been turned into parking places for a large number of motor vehicles. Street vendors have also encroached upon the road space, he alleged.