In the absence of a pedestrian-crossing at the intersection of Anna Salai, Muthu Kumaraswamy Naicker (MKN) Road and Grand Southern Trunk (GST) Road in Guindy, a subway and foot overbridge, located nearby, get overcrowded.
In July 2016,the Chennai Traffic Police had a plan to re-lay the pedestrian-crossing at the intersection. However, till date, for reasons unknown, the facility has not been created. As a result, pedestrians have to walk up to a subway near the Guindy Metro Station on Anna Salai.
Pedestrians say crossing the intersection has been made even more difficult by the blocking of a passage, near the intersection, with barricades. Boulders have also been placed there.
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Earlier, pedestrians, including women, would climb over the boulders to cross the intersection.
The passage was blocked after the intersection began to witness frequent accidents. Motorists coming from MKN Road (which is a one-way for motorists coming from Race Course Road and Five Furlong Road) take a quick left turn towards GST Road.
Commuters can also be seen jumping over the median at the intersection.
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“The boulders and barricades have to be removed and a pedestrian-crossing must be re-laid at the earliest to avoid fatal accidents. Ever since the crossing was blocked, pedestrians have had to walk up to the Thiru Vi Ka Guindy Industrial Estate,” says P. Sathyanarayanan, a resident of Race View Colony, Bharathi Nagar.
A Chennai Traffic Police official says, “A site near the Kathipara underpass has been identified for creation of a pedestrian-crossing. A decision to re-lay the pedestrian-crossing at the intersection will be taken only after conducting a viability study.”