Chennai roads becoming a nightmare

By S. Shivakumar

CHENNAI, JUNE 9. Travelling along Chennai roads is increasingly becoming a nightmare with more and more road space being cornered by encroachments.

The variety of encroachments include indiscriminate and unofficial parking lots, rampant structures and construction of buildings violating the CMDA norms, even in congested areas such as Triplicane and West Mambalam, billboards butting on to the road and hawkers.

With congested roads bursting at its seams, poor enforcement of rules and the absence of proper mechanism to ensure speedy movement of accident victims to hospitals, have converted most of the city roads into death traps.

As the provision of additional facilities and improvements to the existing roads do not keeping pace with the increase in traffic, there has been an alarming increase in congestion and accidents. On an average, two persons get hit by speeding vehicles each day. The toll because of road accidents for the current year has already crossed 230.

Lack of enforcement is the main reason pointed out for the state of affairs. Haphazard parking, blatant violation of one-way and other traffic rules, speeding and jumping signals go unchecked in most parts of the city. ``If you wait for a signal on empty roads you are the butt of nasty jokes'', says a regular two-wheeler rider. ``If you wait for a signal at Anna Salai, say near Spencers or TVS during lean hours, it is even likely that you are run over'', says another harried road user.

Surprisingly, though Chennai has a road length of over 2,000 km, only about 500 km is used for vehicular movement. A highways engineer points out that just by ensuring that there is no haphazard parking and removing the encroachments not protected by court orders, the authorities can provide space for double the existing vehicle population. Over 40 per cent of the road network is in poor condition.

Moreover, Chennai has a myriad collection of vehicles including about 15 lakh cycles and over 10,000 fishcarts. In addition about one lakh vehicles from other States come into the city.

Road users are agitated as without proper focus by the enforcing agencies and the various traffic action plans remaining on paper, driving on Chennai roads is taking a turn for the worse day by day.

Continued haphazard parking of vehicles and no sustained action against vehicles found illegally parked has eroded the credibility of the recent moves of the traffic police. ``How do the police allow so many vehicles to be parked in front of the various hospitals, shopping malls and hotels, disrupting the regular flow of traffic. However, you find the police removing parked vehicles from relatively clear roads'', charges a harassed motorist.

The entire stretch of Third Avenue Road in Shanti Colony, Anna Nagar, has been hijacked for parking tourist taxis. Similarly, several vehicles are parked permanently on Adithnar Salai in Pudupet affecting free flow of traffic.

However, a glaring case of police turning a blind eye to motorists problem is at Nungambakkam High Road and Village Road junction. Permission has been given to a hotel and parking of vehicles spills into the main road. This is not an isolated case.

For instance, one wonders how permission was granted for two departmental stores on Kilpauk Garden Road in Aspiran Garden, though there is no sufficient parking space.

``The police alone should not be blamed for the sorry state of affairs. The CMDA and the Corporation authorities share an equal responsibility in reducing traffic congestion'', claims a police officer.

Among the biggest setback for the city was the regularisation scheme for illegal structures of the CMDA during the earlier DMK regime which has done irreparable damage to the city traffic, points out a traffic planner.

The need of the hour is for a coordinated effort by various government agencies to work out schemes to improve and streamline traffic.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : Online lessons for carnatic music