With concrete roads, granite pavements and a green median, Harrington Road will wear an all-new look in a few months. Amidst these changes, one thing will however remain — the G7 Chetpet traffic post-cum-police station. The tiny, crammed booth stands at the intersection of Harrington Road and Spurtank Road. It lacks a name board. With asbestos roof and covered partly with iron grill, the station serves as office for 24 police personnel.
It is inside this booth that police men change their clothes, have their lunch/dinner and maintain their records. Created after the bifurcation of Nungambakkam division, the police post was made possible by sponsorship of a well-wisher. It however lacks civic amenities.
With work at Harrington Road continuing for the last eight months and a part of Poonamallee High Road having been made one-way, the traffic volume on this stretch has increased keeping the personnel on their toes.
“Our actual strength should be 48, but we are only 24 now. We need at least 34 personnel to carry out various duties. Often, some of us are sent on assignments to other stations,” said the traffic personnel. Apart from traffic management, police in the SI grade have to meet fine collection targets .
The G7 Chetpet jurisdiction covers a part of Spurtank Road, Guruswamy Bridge, Harrington Road till Pachaiyappa’s College and T.P. Chatram.
The location of at least six schools makes traffic management on this stretch a challenge. Also, Harrington Road is a vital stretch connecting Poonamallee High Road and Valluvar Kottam High Road.
“As Harrington Road is a busy stretch, it must be made a ‘regular traffic point’ where police regulate traffic from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Currently, we regulate at two points from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. as we are short-staffed,” said a policeman.
The neighbourhood also sees heavy traffic on weekends, due to busy auditoriums and halls, including Sir Venkatasubba Rao Hall, Chinmaya Heritage and Kuchalambal Kalyana Mandapam. “Harrington Road is getting busier by the day and without traffic cops it is difficult to negotiate the stretch. The booth must be upgraded,” said K.N. Muthuswamy, whose office is located on Harrington Road.
Senior police officials say they have represented the matter to the traffic department. “We have approached the Chennai Corporation to help us locate a place where the station can be shifted,” said S. Rajendran, Deputy Commissioner of Police Traffic (East). With regard to staff shortage, he said they were working out a plan whereby more staff can be deployed on the busy stretch.
