The entry gate at the southern end of the bus terminus in MMDA Colony in Choolaimedu remains locked since last August. The decision to lock the entrance was taken following a surprise inspection by a team of officials from Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC). During the visit, they found that the premises was let out for unauthorised parking of vehicles after collecting a ‘token fee.’ Vehicles of individuals and cab services were found parked on the spacious premises of the terminus.
As buses and commuters now use the exit point, the space near the locked gate has become a den for anti-socials. They take advantage of the poor illumination in this section. “A police booth at the terminus will deter petty criminals from loitering around terminus,” said B. Viswanathan, a commuter from Choolaimedu.
At present, the terminus, which was renovated a year ago, operates only two services to Broadway (Route No: 15G; MMDA to Broadway via Aminjikarai, KMC and Central railway station) and Anna Square (Route No: 27B; MMDA to Anna Square via Aminjikarai, Egmore and Triplicane) with most of the trips made by 15G (15 trips per day) every day. To go to other areas, commuters have to board the 27C route number, which stops near the terminus that is attached to Anna Nagar West depot, to reach CMBT and then board another bus to go to their respective destinations. On the other hand, the huge space at the terminus, which is open between 6 a.m. and 9.30 p.m, is underutilised with most of the bus bays remaining empty.
A portion of the compound wall is broken. Concrete benches, which are meant for commuters, are used as sleeping slabs by miscreants. Most of the commuters wait for the buses near the time-keeper’s office at the entrance of the terminus to ensure their safety, especially at night. As both sides of the road outside the terminus are used for illegal parking of goods vehicles, police patrol jeep halts at a distance from the terminus making it difficult for commuters and MTC staff to seek their help during emergencies.
MTC officials said that after the routine service, all buses return to the Anna Nagar West depot after the last service for the day, which is around 9.30 p.m. Miscreants make use of the near-empty terminus to engage in anti-social activities.
“Presence of a police booth will act as a deterrent to antisocials. However, such decisions have to be taken by senior MTC officials in consultation with the police,” said an MTC official.
