The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : In Vyasarpadi, traffic hold-ups are routine

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Mar 24, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

In Vyasarpadi, traffic hold-ups are routine

Swahilya

During peak hours, it's chaos at underpass connecting Vyasarpadi and Perambur Massive traffic hold-up during peak hours at the underpass connecting Vyasarpadi and Perambur is a regular feature

HOURS OF WAITING: The Mettupalayam-Perambur High Road underpass is choked during rush hour. It takes over 45 minutes for residents of north Chennai, who use this crucial link to reach the central business district of the metro, to cross this point. — Photo: V. Ganesan

CHENNAI: A notice board to the left of the underpass that connects Basin Bridge and Vyasarpadi prescribes a maximum limit of 40 kmph for cars and two wheelers.

On Monday, the driver of a car pointed to it and smiled. "We consider ourselves lucky if we can cross the underpass at 25 km per hour. But look at this... I am waiting for over 45 minutes in the sun," he says. He draws attention to the plight of a sweating traffic constable trying to control the swell of traffic.

Massive traffic hold-ups during peak hours at the underpass connecting Vyasarpadi and Perambur is a regular feature.

But the re-opening of the Ganesapuram subway now laid with concrete and the laying of a tar road near the subway at Basin Bridge has helped to ease the flow of traffic a little bit.

Some active traffic policing is on to reduce mishaps in what the police terms, "an accident-prone zone."

A team of 10 police personnel was struggling a couple of months ago as the subway was heavily damaged during last year's rains and heavy vehicles were diverted from this point. But now the situation is far better, according to a local policeman.

15,000 vehicles

However, residents feel that the traffic snarl during peak hours still continued. "From Vyasarpadi to Basin Bridge junction, the right turn is allowed at random. This causes a pile up of vehicles turning right and left," a motorist said, pointing out that the vehicles could be allowed right in turns.

Traffic policemen posted at the spot now have the task of managing around 15,000 vehicles of varying size and utility that pass by the subway during peak hours.

A Vyasarpadi resident said that though the laying of roads has helped in smoothening the traffic flow, the section of the road in front of the Ramalinga Vallalar temple near the subway has to be widened. Residents said that the causeway could have separate cycle lanes like the Perambur subway.

With the completion of the concrete road in Ganesapuram subway near the Vyasarpadi Jeeva Railway Station, the load on the Vyasarpadi subway, which was earlier taking the vehicles from the closed subway, has reduced.

The Basin Bridge subway connecting Vyasarpadi Sundaram Street, Erukkancheri High Road and N.H-5, constantly has heavily-laden lorries plying through. Since office-goers from Perambur, Kolathur, Sembium, Tiru.vi.ka Nagar, Kakkanji Colony and Bhakthavatsalam Colony commute to Parry's Corner, Purasawalkam and Anna Salai, a single connecting road up to the Perambur bridge was an imperative need for North Chennai, residents said.

Assembly announcement

Last year, an announcement was made in the State Assembly sanctioning the construction of a flyover at the cost of Rs. 50 crores, replacing the existing railway underpass at Vyasarpadi.

Radhakrishnan Nagar MLA P.K. Sekar Babu stressed the need to construct a flyover over the railway bridge at Vyasarpadi on the Chennai - Kolkata highway, to overcome the traffic problem created during the monsoon and at peak hours.

The PWD Minister O. Paneerselvam had given a written reply stating that the existing underpass was at a lower level than the surrounding areas, causing flooding during the monsoon every year that affected traffic movement.

During a review of rain-hit areas, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa announced the construction of a flyover to get over the congestion problem.

Mr Paneerselvam had then said that, to implement a long-standing demand of the people in the area, the government was considering a proposal to build the flyover on its own using Chennai metropolitan development plan in 2005-06.

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