After the initial work on the Railway Under Bridge (RUB) – which is supposed to replace the existing railway level crossing (L.C 4) at the Korattur railway station – undertaken a year ago, residents and motorists are irked at the fact that the major portion of the work remains to be executed.
As a result, residents and commuters have to travel extra distance to reach their destinations.
A trench was first dug as part of the preliminary work preventing pedestrians and motorists from using the closed level crossing there. As a result of this, every day, motorists from neighbouring areas like Kolathur, Red Hills, Korattur and Puzhal, have to take a detour of at least five km via Retteri to reach Anna Nagar and the central parts of the city.
The existing one-way traffic system at many stretches of Anna Nagar, created for carrying out infrastructure works, have only compounded the problems faced by residents and motorists from the north-western parts of the city.
“In order to ensure smooth flow of work at the RUB, the existing level crossing was closed. With the work being delayed, it is an ordeal for us to reach the other side of the railway station,” said K. Sekar, a resident of Korattur. According to highways officials, the project is a joint venture between the State Highways and the Southern Railway and would be built at a cost of around Rs. 20 crore.
As per agreement, the portion of the project involving the track would be undertaken by the railways and the rest of the work, which includes land acquisition on either side of the track outside the railway station, would be undertaken by the State Highways.
At present, the Korattur railway station, which is located on the Chennai Central – Arakkonam section, has four tracks with two of them being used for the suburban rail network.
The existing Foot Over Bridge (FOB) at the station is mainly used by rail commuters to reach the platforms at the station. Motorists have no option but to take a detour.
The under-construction RUB is expected to end traffic and commuting woes as motorists can reach Anna Nagar in less than five minutes via Padi on the Chennai – Tiruvallur High (CTH) Road.
It would also prevent motorists from the neighbourhood from using the Retteri route, which is mainly used by container lorries and is accident-prone.
