Busy section of CTH Road gets a fresh coat of tar

As part of monsoon-preparedness work, a three-kilometre stretch of the arterial road is being relaid

Between Annanoor and Thirumullaivoyal junction. PHOTO: D. MADHAVAN

The battered Chennai–Tiruvallur High (CTH) Road at Thirumullaivoyal junction has finally been relaid, which is a matter of big relief for motorists.

The road-relaying work is carried out between Annanoor and Ambattur, a distance of around three kilometres, as part of the monsoon-preparedness work by the Highways Department.

However, residents have raised concerns over how the work is being done. The road level is being raised by one foot.

“The relaying work was being done without milling the damaged stretch. As a result, shops and other facilities on this section (around the Thirumullaivoyal junction) are at a lower level than the raised carriageway,” says S. Gunasekar, a trader in Thirumullaivoyal.

Residents point out that the relaying work around the junction was done twice within a week after sudden showers last week washed the bitumen off the freshly-laid road and turned most of the relaid portion of the stretch especially around the Thirumullaivoyal junction potholed. As a result, the stretch was relaid for the second time in a week.

Other works

Prior to the lockdown, a new modern digital traffic signal with CCTV cameras was installed at the Thirumullaivoyal intersection of CTH Road and Cholambedu Road. The intersection with Kulakarai Street had a traffic signal for many years. Motorists going towards Ambattur can take a right turn at the intersection on Cholambedu Road to reach Ambattur, Korattur, Padi and Mogappair without getting caught in the traffic at Rakki theatre tri-junction near the bus terminus in Ambattur Old Town (OT).

As a result, traffic would get hit at the Cholambedu intersection on CTH Road due to the lack of traffic proper regulation earlier, especially during rush hour.

At present, Kulakarai Street covers the northern part of Thirumullavoyal including areas like SVT Nagar, Subramaniya Nagar, Thendral Nagar East, Masilamani Nagar, Lalithaammbal Nagar, Velammal New Town and Venketachalam Nagar abutting Puzhal lake. Cholambedu Road comprises areas on the south of the neighbourhood along Ambattur lake and Thirumullavoyal railway station. The CTH Road is a key link connecting two sides of Thirumullaivoyal. As a result, the flow of vehicular traffic at the two intersections on CTH Road is high.