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Public transport must justify expenditure

With the State government identifying four corridors to implement a 111-km-long monorail network at an estimated cost of Rs.16,600 crore, the city's committed expenditure on elevated rail transit infrastructure, which includes the Metro, crosses a whopping $5 billion. »      1 comment
Chennai Metro Rail would be in a unique position to try many innovative experiments to revamp the face of public transport in the city, say experts. Photo: M. Vedhan

MRTS lessons worth learning

The Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) corridor has been in existence for over a decade. The 25-km line, which was originally supposed to be Chennai's ‘Metro', continues to be plagued with problems. It transports less than 20 per cent of the projected passenger capacity. »      12 comments

Time to tap potential of electronic ticketing machines

While the ETM is just a hand-held device used by MTC conductors to issue passenger tickets, whether they are used to their full potential or not has larger implications. »      1 comment

Will mini-bus service alone address major transport problems?

Back in the summer of 1982, Girija Raghavan used to religiously wait for a mini-bus every day around 8.30 a.m. to take her from Ashok Nagar to the T. Nagar bus terminus. “Even a card with all the... »      3 comments

Though a large number of children use the city’s road spaces, their needs have not been sufficiently taken into account, say experts. Photo: M. Vedhan

Are city roads children friendly?

Children use the city’s streets in very many ways. They use the space to roll along an old tyre, dash through the alleyways on a cycle en route to school, or to get together as a group to play. »

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CHENNAI, July 5, 2011

Time to boost public transport in a big way

Congestion on major roads has increased eight-fold between 1984 and 2008 »
Over 350 private buses operate out of Chennai every day and the omnibus fleet caters to nearly 50 per cent of the passenger volumes. Private buses parked in Koyambedu. Photo: S.S.Kumar
CHENNAI, June 14, 2011

Seeking a regulatory framework for private buses

When 22 passengers boarded the ill-fated Pollachi-bound private bus around 8.30 p.m. on Tuesday, they could not have suspected that they were inside a “death trap”. That is the word th... »
EXPOSED TO RISK: The compulsory use of helmets by two-wheeler riders alone can reduce accident deaths by 20 to 30 per cent. Photo: N. Sridharan
CHENNAI, May 31, 2011

Advantages of wearing helmet

Is there really any point in wearing a helmet? The city traffic police might have announced a deadline which came and went amid much talk of awareness and the need for motorists to change on their... »
Metro rail construction work under way at Nehru Park on Poonamallee High Road. Photo: S. S. Kumar
CHENNAI, May 17, 2011

A few questions about Metro Rail project

Now that a new government has assumed office in the State, the question that many residents of the city seem to be asking is: Will the Chennai Metro Rail project be pursued at the same pace... »
Introduction of scientific testing techniques to ensure unskilled drivers do not get through the licensing process is the need of the hour, say experts. Photo: M.Karunakaran
CHENNAI, March 8, 2011

Stringent driving tests required to improve road behaviour

If results of the driving tests conducted by the regional transport offices (RTOs) are anything to go by, the city has one of the most skilled set of motorists in the world. Only a handful o... »
Due to the lack of bus shelters in many places, passengers have been currently left to fend for themselves in the mid-summer heat and the monsoon rain.
CHENNAI, June 28, 2011

Waiting for bus – the toughest job of commuters

Travelling in a Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) bus in the city may not be a pleasant experience for many. But, it pales in comparison to the inconvenience commuters waiting for buses are... »
An MTC bus with damaged seats seen at the T. Nagar terminus on Monday. Photo: R.Ragu
CHENNAI, June 7, 2011

Inadequate maintenance, bane of MTC buses

Late on Thursday evening, five-year-old Ayesha became the 53rd person to be fatally knocked down by a Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) bus this year. While enough fingers have been pointed... »
Without improvements to battery technology and bringing down cost through some means of cross-subsidy, electric vehicles will remain unviable. File photo
CHENNAI, May 24, 2011

Cleaner technologies need to be subsidised

Mohammad Moosa has never been to a petrol bunk in the last two years. He rides an electric scooter which touches a maximum speed of 40 kmph. “It does not have a clutch or a gear and I... »
While signals are installed with the aim of easing flow of vehicles, do they succeed in doing that at all locations? A scene at a Thiruvanmiyur signal on Monday. Photo: M. Karunakaran
CHENNAI, March 15, 2011

It all signals longer travel time

Thanks to large number of traffic signals, one-way traffic arrangements and heavy volume of traffic »
Chennai City Traffic Police says that introducing an e-challan system would be followed up with other technological aids that would modernise enforcement. Photo: M.Vedhan
CHENNAI, February 22, 2011

Traffic police plan e-challan system

A proposal has been mooted by the Chennai City Traffic Police (CCTP) to set up an e-challan system modelled after similar programmes in place in New York and London. The essence of the schem... »
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Slideshow
Walking and cycling account for 34 per cent of all daily trips being undertaken in Chennai. Many more people walk to take buses and trains. Shockingly, 42 per cent of all road accidents involve pedestrians. Why are people on foot being driven off the road in Tamil Nadu's capital?
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Slideshow
The Chennai Mass Rapid Transit System may have been sanctioned 26 years ago, but it remains a work in progress even today. Age seems to be telling on the overhead structures. At some stations, loose masonry has fallen on cars, causing damage. Will the Tamil Nadu Government, which has invested in the MRTS, finally take a closer look at it?
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Slideshow
When everyone is talking of investing in new Metros, many commuters are asking why more cannot be done for these ageing systems.
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