Ahead of the inauguration of the new domestic and international terminals at the Chennai airport, repair works are on at the Tirusulam pedestrian subway. The subway that connects the Tirusulam railway station to the airport has been poorly maintained for several months now.
“Owing to the modernisation of the airport, we received instructions to renovate the subway. Since this subway is jointly maintained by Southern Railways, State Highways Department and the Airport Authority of India (AAI), we are tiling, whitewashing and cleaning only a part of the subway,” said a senior official of Southern Railways.
The station has platforms for the suburban and long-distance trains. As the long-distance trains do not stop here, the platform remains unused and is exploited by miscreants. So, the platform will be closed soon, said the official.
Sources say that the railway station will be revamped in one year’s time. “The three departments carry out renovation, without any coordination, in a haphazard manner. On the one hand, there is a plan to shut the platform and on the other there is a proposal to build a roof over it. The lift has not been functioning for long but the railways and highways department blame the AAI for that. The commuters are affected in this blame-game,” said a source.
An official at the airport said that he is unsure about when the lift would be repaired. “I wonder how effective the renovation will be. Several of our own women employees feel unsafe about taking the subway,” he said.
