With residents and commuters near the Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus in Koyambedu struggling with traffic snarls everyday, experts have suggested various ways, including a dedicated flyover for buses in the area.
Delivering the R Thillainayagam Memorial Endowment lecture on ‘Bus dedicated flyover at CMBT’ organised by The Institution of Highway Transport (India) Chennai, recently, former principal of PMR Institute of Technology D R Kiran said that a dedicated flyover for buses with entry from the Koyambedu junction and exit towards the Vadapalani junction could result in congestion-free entry and exit for buses at CMBT.
“It is an exasperating experience to commute near CMBT along Kaliamman Koil Street, the only link from Koyambedu to Arcot Road. The long fleet of outstation buses coming out of the CMBT, trying to take a right turn, causes a major bottleneck. A traffic jam resulting for more than 30 minutes in this area is not uncommon,” he added.
Sometimes, policemen divert the buses during peak hours to proceed till the southern end of Koyambedu market and return.
The extra distance, in addition to the diversion along the Koyambedu Flyover, adds an extra 2 kilometres for South-bound buses which form 80 per cent of the total CMBT traffic.
“Besides causing delay in departure for long distance buses, millions of litres of fuel are wasted every year due to this extra distance and traffic hold-ups,” he said.
If all buses were allowed to join the Inner Ring Road at the CMBT through flyovers dedicated to CMBT buses (both outstation and metropolitan), all these can be reduced, he felt.
Kiran’s proposal for a dedicated bus flyover comes in the wake of the Chennai Corporation planning a
one-kilometre flyover on Jawaharlal Nehru High Road (also known as 100 ft Road and Inner Ring Road). However, experts opined that the proposal of Kiran was worth considering as it would reduce the current detour of two kilometres taken by the buses from CMBT to a mere 800 metres.
With the BRTS plan also taking shape, this plan could cut costs as well ease congestion, they added.