CHENNAI: Stench from all corners and heaps of garbage now welcome passengers to the Broadway Bus Terminus, one of the largest termini for Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses. The poor upkeep of the terminus that acts as a hub for MTC buses that ply north of the city, has left the commuters incensed.
The terminus provides bus connectivity to Ennore, Thiruvottiyur, Thiruvanmiyur, Kovalam, Anna Nagar, Poonamallee and several other places. Until January 2018, it handled over 1.25 lakh commuters daily.
Besides the lack of hygiene, the terminus is plagued with issues of insufficient waiting seats, absence of drinking water, leaky roofs and worn out floors.
With the recent announcement of free bus rides for women, increasing the patronage, poorly maintained public toilets affect the commuters most. Regular travellers said the ceiling is dilapidated and the bus stand gets inundated during showers.
“A foul smell emanates from the bus stand from all corners, and during rains, water leaks into the waiting areas. The terminus has been neglected completely for the last 15 years,” said S Ravanan, a regular commuter from Ennore.
Another passenger R Rajkumar of Saidapet said, “Frequency of buses to West Saidapet and other parts has not been increased yet to the pre-Covid levels. Thus, many commuters are forced to wait here for hours. Making matters worse, the seats here are damaged and pavements are wholly occupied by small vendors.”
While half of the toilets remain shut always, the three women rest-rooms are ill-maintained. There is no drinking water facility as well at the terminus.
MTC officials, however, claimed contractors have been strictly warned against locking down toilets. “We have asked the civic body to clear the garbage. A 21-floor multi modal hub, which would facilitate parking for bus, cars and two wheelers, has been proposed for the terminus under the smart city project,” they added.
