THOOTHUKUDI: The absence of a railway overbridge (RoB) at Mellur, which is a long-pending demand, continues to cripple traffic movement in the heart of Thoothukudi, with frequent closures of the railway gate on the busy Keela Rathaveethi-Rameswaram Road forcing commuters to endure long waits and detours.
According to sources, a RoB project was proposed in 2009. However, the plan was eventually dropped in 2020 due to opposition from a section of residents citing that it would affect the annual car procession of the Sivan temple.
Motorists and traders say the railway gate is shut at least 10 to 15 times a day due to shunting operations at the nearby station, paralysing vehicular movement and disrupting business during peak hours. With no RoB in place, motorists are forced to take a detour of nearly four kilometres via the beach road to reach their destinations.
The stretch at Mellur, particularly Keela Rathaveethi, is a narrow and congested road lined with shops and houses a prominent Sivan temple that attracts hundreds of devotees daily. Traffic congestion worsens during morning and evening hours as school students, office-goers and devotees crowd the route, with vehicles crawling bumper-to-bumper.
“Every time the gate is closed, we are stuck for 10 to 20 minutes. The only option is to take a long detour,” said K Uma Devi, an office-goer from Nandhagopalapuram. Echoing similar concerns, road user Er Henry Daniel said waiting under the scorching sun for prolonged periods has become a daily ordeal. “Without bridge, people have to suffer,” he added.
While a road overbridge has long been seen as the only viable solution, the project has remained stalled for years. A section of local residents had opposed the proposal citing concerns that it would disrupt the annual temple car procession of the Sivan temple, and acquisition of the private lands and buildings. However, other residents and traders argue that the opposition has left the larger public bearing the brunt of worsening traffic and economic losses.
S Raja, General Secretary of the Thoothukudi Centralised Merchants Association, said the recurring traffic snarls have severely affected trade in the area. “An ROB is the only permanent solution,” he stressed.
Official sources said a proposal to eliminate the level crossing through a 450-metre-long overbridge—from Sivankovil Theradi on Keela Rathaveethi to Buckle Channel on Rameswaram Road—was initiated in 2009 and approved by Southern Railway in 2012. The project also involved land acquisition and provision of service roads on either side. However, the plan was eventually dropped in 2020.
A senior railway official told TNIE that the project was shelved following protests from a section of local residents, and there is currently no active proposal to revive it.