Trees in various residential localities in the city continue to lose out to major infrastructure projects.
On Thursday, trees on roads near Kodambakkam bridge were felled to facilitate the repair and strengthening of the 50-year-old structure.
“We will commence work on the bridge this week. Decision on traffic diversion will be made by the police shortly,” said an official of the Chennai Corporation.
Residents of the locality said they were not aware of the Corporation’s decision to cut the trees. The felling took place on Viswanathapuram Main Road, Station Road and Chakrapani Street. Many branches too were pruned to enable better movement of vehicles.
A few years ago, the Corporation had set in motion the process of repairing and strengthening Kodambakkam bridge which serves as a crucial link to Ashok Nagar, Saligramam, K.K. Nagar and Vadapalani.
The civic body managed to vacate several shops beneath the facility to carry out repair work that includes spraying of anti-corrosion material, polymer plastering and grouting. New bearings will be inserted between the pillars and deck slabs after traffic on the bridge is diverted through Rangarajapuram flyover.
Repairs to the 623-metre-long and 12.8-metre-wide bridge were necessitated after an expert study commissioned by the Corporation found expansion joints had weakened due to water seepage. “A number of trees in other areas such as Indira Nagar are in danger because of stormwater drain work. A large number of trees are being uprooted during the rains because workers damage the roots during stormwater work,” said Srinivasan, a resident.
