More potholes than road here

For several years now, Chinnamman Koil Street, a crucial link between Ambattur and Avadi, has been in shambles.

The road, which provides an alternative route to the Chennai Tiruvallur High Road — notorious for its traffic congestion — has become almost impossible to use, thanks to gaping potholes.

Residents of Avadi said that students of several education institutions have to negotiate the road every day. But since it has been left unpaved for several years now, and large portions of it have been dug up to lay pipelines for a water supply network and the underground drainage network, motorists find it practically impassable.

J. Shankar, a resident of Annanur said: “Taking the Chinnamman Koil Street from the Ambattur zone office to N.M.Road, Avadi, reduces the distance by half. Otherwise, I have to vie for space on the crowded Chennai Tiruvallur High Road and travel 10 km.”

V. Vineeth, a resident of Kamaraj Nagar, said that trenches dug up to lay the pipelines had not been closed properly, and so, people have had to manoeuvre through slushy stretches, especially after the recent rains. Schoolchildren are the worst affected as they are forced walk on slippery roads, he added.

Other residents in the locality share similar woes, as many other arterial roads are in poor condition. Every time it rains, Avadi’s roads turn slushy and become risky for pedestrians. “I can’t choose an alternative route to reach my destination as all roads are in equally poor shape,” Mr. Vineeth said.

Residents complained that due to the bad state of the roads, autorickshaw drivers demand Rs. 150 to negotiate even a short distance of two km. They demanded the road be blacktopped immediately.

Officials of the Avadi municipality said 12 important roads, would be laid soon on a priority basis. The project would be taken up once Chennai Metrowater handed over the roads after completing its projects.

“We have asked Metrowater to at least partially hand over the roads to blacktop them within the next three months,” said an official. Work is also on to level the potholes on roads such as Chinnamman Koil Street so that it is in better shape before the monsoon,the officials added.