CHENNAI: Its been 10 days since Harrington Road was partially closed for road work, but residents and users have already started fuming over the discomfort it has caused. However, according to Corporation officials, this ‘inconvenience’ is here to stay for a long time as the Civic body has planned a complete makeover of the uptown street.
According to sources, the corporation has taken up ‘integrated’ road development work on Harrington Road which in six months time will be transformed from its current avatar. “Work on the 750-metre stretch has only just commenced and the road work alone is bound to take at least 3 months to complete. However, for the convenience of the users, the work has been divided into two phases where work on the presently used lane will only begin after work on the first lane is over. We have been given a deadline of 45 days to finish work in each lane and will begin work on other features only after that” informed a Corporation official in charge of the project. “However, the road is expected to be opened completely for public use as soon as this work is completed,” he added.
The `9 crore project will give the road a complete ‘makeover’ according to officials. Apart from the new concrete roads which need very little maintenance compared to tar roads, the integrated road will also incorporate other features such as Cross drainage system, where the storm water drainage lines will only be located on one side with the water from the other side rerouted to the main drain using pipelines. Also, the road will have electrical ducts which will carry all the electrical cables and it will also sport new LED streetlights. Apart from this the road will also feature new and improved footpaths and centre medians with green cover and plants, informed officials.
“Once it is completed the road will rarely have to be disturbed. That is the advantage of integrated roads. Also after seeing the results on Harrington Road, other important roads will be worked on,” said another official. While traffic hassles have already increased on the crucial Harrington Road signal, this is as bad as it will get as there will always be traffic flow on one lane, according to officials. Adding to the chaos is the fact that there are two major schools on the otherwise quiet road — which automatically mean that during drop-off and pick-up time, the roads are clogged with parents in cars.