Power cuts plague subway users

Air passengers and commuters using the Tirusulam subway now have one more reason to complain.

If the poor maintenance of the subway that connects the Tirusulam suburban train station to the Chennai airport was not enough to frustrate commuters, power cuts in the subway have now accentuated their woes.

Usually, the subway remains lit during the day. The subway faces regular power cuts from 12 p.m.-2 p.m., every day. During this period, it is almost impossible for anyone to walk through the dark subway.

Anandhi Padmanabhan, 45, a frequent flier to Pune who uses the subway to take a train to her residence in Egmore from the airport, says, “As such the subway is very unsafe. The power cut has only aggravated the problem. It continues to be one of the badly maintained subways in the city.”

Many commuters had already complained that the subway is unsafe to use during the day as well as the nights due to limited usage by people.

Railway officials said that they were not responsible for the lighting and maintenance of this subway and that the highways department had to do it.

There are a number of subways in the city for which the power supply has been provided by the railways, and in case of a power shutdown they have also provided a generator. However, the highways department was responsible for this subway, an official said.