Of footpaths, broken and absent

The recent rains have made life difficult for pedestrians

October 25, 2014 01:47 am | Updated May 23, 2016 06:46 pm IST - CHENNAI

The absence of footpaths in areas such as Velachery has led to residents wading through flooded roads. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy

The absence of footpaths in areas such as Velachery has led to residents wading through flooded roads. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy

Try taking a walk down Valluvar Salai in Ramapuram, a south western suburb of the city, a couple of hours after a bout of rainfall. You would be stranded, facing a long waterlogged stretch, with no footpath in sight. 

Residents all over the city grapple with bad, broken, or no footpaths throughout the year. But with the onset of the monsoon, the problem has only become more conspicuous. People living in areas including Anna Nagar, Adyar, Velachery, Vadapalani, Mylapore, Mudichur, Nesapakkam, Royapettah, Arumbakkam, Kilpauk, Purusawalkam, Egmore and Tambaram are facing risks resulting from the lack of pedestrian footpaths.  

For 78-year-old Amsaveni Srinivasan, finding a patch of footpath in Purusawalkam is a challenge after the recent rains. “I could not even see the footpath, as the area near Motcham Theatre was flooded. I had to walk in the middle of the road,” she said. 

Badly-maintained footpaths are more challenging for differently abled citizens too. Visually-challenged Sudha Srinivasan fears even stepping out of the house. “It is easy for us to trip and fall, as the pavements are difficult for us to negotiate,” she said.

According to a senior Corporation official, traditionally, footpaths were an afterthought in the city “There was always the pressure to widen roads to accommodate more traffic. We are working on strengthening our platforms now,” the official said, adding the civic body has completed footpaths on 26 major roads. “Earlier, we worked with road contractors for footpaths. We are now consulting architects to build platforms with international standards. Plans are on to construct platforms in 29 more roads soon,” the official added.

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