The Madras Institute of Technology flyover is out of bounds for pedestrians. Heaps of rock sand, piles of garbage, huge clumps of tree branches and a scatter of parked vehicles, under a ‘no-parking’ zone, at the entrance of the staircases make it inaccessible. The staircases are littered with garbage, alcohol bottles and empty cigarette packets, serving as a den for antisocial elements. Only a few pedestrians use the staircases to go to the MIT gate or Nehru Nagar because climbing up and down down those stairs is difficult for most people.
Pedestrians and commuters risk their lives by crossing the railway tracks to go to Radha Nagar and Hasthinapuram.
“As the staircases are deserted after sunset, vagabonds, beggars and others take shelter there.
As a result, pedestrians avoid the flyover. After sunset, drunken brawls are common,” a resident of Nehru Nagar, on conditions of anonymity, said.
Worse at night “After sunset, even men hesitate to climb the steps for fear of being robbed or assaulted by anti-social elements.
Nobody knows what is going on there. Several motorcycles and cars are parked there, a no-parking zone,” said F. Xavier, a pedestrian.
“The space beneath the flyover on the Grand Southern Trunk Road service lane is considered home by hutment dwellers,” he pointed out.
“Haven for antisocial elements” “Instead of using the steps, I use the GST Road and the rail foot overbridge for safety. The bridge is turning into a haven for antisocial elements, who smoke, consume alcohol and roam around the bridge causing fear among the public,” a college student said.
