CHENNAI: Commuters on the Chennai-Tirupati Highway and residents of western suburbs have expressed relief as the Road Over Bridge (ROB) in Pattabiram, which has been under construction for nearly six years, was partially opened for public use on Wednesday.
The two-lane arm of the four-lane ROB, built over level crossing gate 2 between Pattabiram and the Pattabiram Military siding stations, will facilitate two-way traffic between Avadi and Thiruninravur. With a width of 11 metres and a length of 780 metres, this bridge is expected to address a demand that has persisted for 20 years among residents in the area. The ROB was constructed at a cost of Rs 55 crore.
Officials from the highways department said a four-metre-long flyover above the railway line needs to be built to complete the project. “The remaining work on the ROB can only proceed once the level crossing is closed. We will complete the tasks soon,” an official stated. Additionally, plans are in place to build a roundabout in front of the Pattabiram police station, with land acquisition already completed.
T Sadagopan, a local resident and activist, noted, “Residents previously had to take a detour of 6 to 7 km, spending nearly 45 minutes to cross the Pattabiram LC gate 2. Since construction began in 2018, vehicles from Ambattur and Poonamallee heading towards Thiruninravur/Tiruvallur were redirected via Pattabiram-Poonamallee road to reach the Chennai-Tirupati Highway near Outer Ring Road roundabout, just 500 metres from the LC gate.” He also mentioned that the ROB construction had led to the cancellation of MTC buses, resulting in lost connectivity to various areas. “All the bus routes that operated before 2017-18 need to be restored,” he added.