Irked by the delay in the completion of a subway to replace the level crossing at the Korattur railway station, residents went on a protest recently to seek an alternative route that could link parts of Korattur north with Korattur south.
For nearly four years now, residents of various parts of Korattur north have been taking a detour of over five km either through Karukku Main Road or Korattur North Railway Station Road to reach their destination, which would otherwise have involved covering just 100 metres.
Residents of various areas in Korattur north, including Agraharam, Balaji Nagar, Sivalingapuram, Kavya Nagar, Saradha Nagar and Subbulakshmi Nagar, depend on Korattur south for most of their basic needs.
As work to replace level crossing -4 (LC4) is progressing at a snail’s pace, pedestrians and motorists are using a five-foot wide space as an alternative route close to the work site. However, this too was closed a couple of weeks ago citing safety issues.
The project to construct a vehicular subway is a joint venture between Southern Railway and Chennai Corporation, which is being implemented at a cost of Rs. 20 crore.
Chitra Umashankar, secretary of Srinivasapuram Residents’ Welfare Association said: “We depend on Korattur south, located on the other side of the railway level crossing, for schools and colleges. We don’t even have a bank ATM in Korattur south.”
Even those using the foot overbridge to reach Korattur south face problems. “As the facility ends on the station platform, I have to pay Rs.10 for a platform ticket to use it every time to reach the other end,” she added. Residents complained that only 30 per cent of the work had been completed so far and the deadline had been pushed at least twice .
