CHENNAI: When it was announced that Chennai will be getting the Metro Rail, residents rejoiced. But, the negligence to patch up roads after contruction has left residents miffed. Though the trains run actively on the tracks, the mess has been left behind on the roads.
A case in point is the five-kilometre long Thiruvottriyur High Road (TH Road) that has been left neglected ever since the Metro Rail work started a few years ago. Most parts of the road are filled with potholes and bumps causing inconvenience to commuters.
Except for the stretch in Tondiarpet where the offices of Joint Commissioner of Police and Zonal Corporation are located, the bitumen on most of the road from Old Washermenpet to Thiruvottriyur has disappeared in the rain. When water floods the road during monsoon, the potholes become invisible, putting commuters’ lives at risk.
Bumpy ride
More than four-wheeler owners, it is the share-autorickshaw drivers and two-wheeler riders who are complaining. “Since share-autorickshaws are mostly three-wheelers, chances are high that they will topple,” said share-autorickshaw driver Jaya Suriya, who plies between Parrys and Theradi.
The TH Road is a vital link connecting commuters to important places mainly hospitals like Apollo, Stanley, RSRM, and CSI Rainy. As frequencies of buses have come down, share-autorickshaws have become the primary choice.
“Pregnant women and senior citizens are now wary of commuting by share-autorickshaws because of the road’s condition. This has affected our revenue too,” added Suriya.
Meanwhile, compared to other arterial roads of Chennai, which are either four- or six-lane, the TH Road is only two- lane. Since the road along the median is in a very bad condition, vehicles use it as a parking spot. It has reduced the width of the road, and even after CMRL has finished work on certain stretches, roads have not been relaid.
Traffic snarls
E Dinesh, an MTC bus driver along the route, said the excessive vehicles parked on the road causes difficulties for buses plying through the stretch. ‘‘If a bus starts at Thiruvottriyur (Tvt), no vehicle can overtake the bus for the next five kilometres as the road is narrow. It leads to vehicles trailing behind causing traffic jam,” he said.
Lakhs of passengers commute on bus routes 101 (Tvt to Poonamalle), 159 (Tvt to Thiruverkadu), 159 A (Tvt to CMBT), 159B (Tollgate to CMBT), 56 (Ennore to Mint) and 6D (Tollgate to Thiruvanmiyur) every day. Even outside the Thiruvottriyur bus terminus, the road is unlaid.
“Even though the road is heavily used, officials have not thought of even patching it,” rued Dinesh.
More than a thousand schoolchildren use this road as well. When Express took a ride up and down the high road we noticed that roads were in a battered condition in localities like Tondiarpet, Kaladipet and Thiruvottriyur.
“Unlike heavy motor vehicles, two-wheelers have the least shock absorbent quality. Lower back pain and joint pain have become part of my life now,” rued P Thanigaivel, a motorist from Old Washermenpet, who is a State Bank of India employee.
Express also noticed that as the roads are bumpy throughout, the Metrowater lorries that are in bad condition, tend to spill more water than usual. This also could lead to an enormous amount of wastage especially when the city has just recovered from a water crisis.
Officials’ take
While the stretch between Tollgate and Thiruvottriyur has been handed over to CMRL for Metro work, the rest of the road is maintained by the Highways department.
“Whenever a Metro Rail median construction was completed, the road has been restored. In places where it is not completed, road restoration work is in progress,” said a CMRL official.
Contrary to the reality, the State Highways officials said regular patch-work of road is being done from Old Washermenpet to Tollgate. “Whenever we get complaints, we patch up the place to avoid bumps,” said an official.