CHENNAI: Amid chaos over demonetisation and Nada cyclone, three flyovers in the city were quietly thrown open to traffic on Thursday.
Though it was done without any fanfare, this has come as a big relief for thousands of commuters.
At Anna Nagar, the much-delayed portion connecting Poonamallee High Road was opened. This is the second arm of the three-part structure, the first of which between Poonamallee High Road and Nelson Manickam Road was inaugurated in March. Heaving a huge sigh of relief, C Anand from Anna Nagar Third Avenue said, “We had to wait for 15-20 minutes every day to cross the stretch where traffic was diverted.”
The second was the long-pending flyover in Vadapalani, which took 11 long years to plan and commission. This will ease congestion along Jawaharlal Nehru Road, the stretch with highest vehicle density during rush hours. As this project, taken up by Chennai Metro Rail and Highways Department, was delayed due to land acquisition process, commuters had to spend 30 to 45 minutes to cover this 4 km stretch.
At Korratur, the Retteri flyover on Inner Ring Road was opened for traffic on Thursday. Construction of this three-lane (11-metre wide) flyover connecting western and northern parts of the city was put on fast-track mode after the elections.
“This one-km-long facility built by the State Highways Department will help container lorries from Sriperumbudur and Thiruvallur to reach port without much delay,” a Corporation official said, adding that on an average, 50,000 vehicles were expected to use this bridge carrying traffic from the Padi junction to Madhavaram.