Though the Central Bus Stand in the city is considered as one of the cleanest bus stands in the region, water logging during rainy days has turned out to be a huge headache for the civic authorities.
The recent rain (received on Wednesday and Thursday), could be termed as moderate as far as Tiruchi city was concerned.
Though, it did not create waterlogging in any part of the city, water could be seen stagnating in the bus bays and open space of the Central Bus Stand in Tiruchi.
Though there was no problem in the bus bays designated for Chennai, Villupuram, Coimbatore and Salem bound buses, water logging was mainly reported on bus bays designated for Dindigul, Madurai and Thanjavur bound buses.
Knee-deep water caused inconvenience to the passengers, shopkeepers, bus crews, time keepers and sanitary workers.
The passengers and bus crews had to wade through the water to board the buses or alight from them.
Moreover, water stagnation has caused extensive erosion of the ‘tar’ surface at the bus stand.
Deep craters have come up in a few locations. The open surface has been spotted with deep potholes at several spots.
Regular passengers, transport corporation workers and shopkeepers say that it is not a temporary phenomenon.
The issue crops up whenever the city receives moderate to heavy rainfall.
“We have been witnessing the issue for the last five to six years. The bus bays become like a pool on rainy days. The Corporation officials are well aware of the issue,” said a shopkeeper on condition of anonymity.
Poor storm water drains
Locals say that waterlogging has exposed the chinks in the storm water system in and around the bus stand. Inquiries reveal that the storm water drains and underground sewerage canals have been malfunctioning for long.
The accumulation of silt is preventing the free flow of water.
“The Corporation is managing the situation by manually pumping out stagnated water. The vehicles invariably visit the bus stand to remove water during rainy days. We are happy that the Corporation comes to our rescue on rainy days. But, we need a permanent solution,” demands another shopkeeper at the bus stand.
