Near a dilapidated brick-and-mortar police booth at the intersection of Jawaharlal Nehru Main Road and Anna Main Road in Ashok Pillar, a few traffic police personnel check documents of two-wheelers while commuters who have detrained at the Ashok Nagar Metro Rail station are trying hopelessly to cross the intersection, where vehicles whiz past.
After a while, some commuters get impatient and dart across the intersection, from the Udayam Theatre Complex side to the opposite side.
On an average, every day, two pedestrians get injured while crossing the intersection, police sources say.
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A foot-over-bridge (FOB) connecting the Metro Rail station with the intersection, lands near the Udayam Theatre Complex and also on premises of the railway station.
Every day, hundreds of commuters use Metro rail services at Ashok Pillar to reach localities such as Vadapalani, Guindy and Koyambedu. As the ESIC Hospital is also located near the intersection, patients at the hospital and their relatives also board trains at Metro Rail station at least to reach Koyambedu where they can board buses at the CMBT terminus.
Many commuters, especially during rush hour, prefer Metro Rail services to buses along the route, especially when they are headed towards Koyambedu, as the former makes for faster travel and spares them the chaotic traffic at Ekkattuthangal, Kasi Theatre, the section near Lakshman Shurthi, Vadapalani and MMDA junctions.
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With the flyover work in front of the CMBT bus terminus in Koyambedu progressing at a snail’s pace, the traffic between MMDA junction and Koyambedu flyover is chaotic.
“Reaching Metro Rail stations by crossing Jawaharlal Nehru Main Road is risky for commuters, especially senior citizens and women. We have to cross the road along with other pedestrians and walk quite a distance before reaching any of these stations. At night, we find it riskier as the stretches where Metro Rail stations are located, are poorly illuminated,” says S. Megna, a commuter from Anna Nagar.
Commuters using any of the other Metro Rail stations, including Arumbakkam, Ekkattuthangal, Guindy, Alandur, Nanganallur and Chennai Airport, also find it difficult to reach these stations from arterial roads such as J.N. Main Road and GST Road.
Due to the presence of medians and continuous flow of vehicular traffic, they often have to walk quite a distance to reach the nearest traffic junction to cross over to the Metro Rail station. Even in the newly inaugurated Metro Rail line between Shenoy Nagar and Nehru Park, which covers a distance of 7.6 km, the underground stations are located so far from the junctions that commuters have to walk a long distance to reach them.
(It may be noted that commuters can reach the other side of the road, using a facility provided at these Metro Rail stations but cannot get on to the road. They can cross over, either through an underground or elevated passageway, only to access the other side of the railway station.)
Safety concerns
With most of the walkways near Metro Rail stations being poorly-lit, safety of commuters is another concern. Lighting is extremely poor on the pathways near the entry and exit points at Arumbakkam, Ashok Pillar, Ekkattuthangal, Little Mount, Guindy and Alandur stations. The footpaths on these sections are also damaged.
Currently, a sandy pavement near the St. Thomas Mount Metro Rail station is being re-laid with tiled footpath. “Due to defunct traffic signals, motorists don’t halt at the traffic point near St. Thomas Mount Metro Rail station to allow walkers to cross the stretch,” says D. Sri Ram, a pedestrian.
“We will ensure better access to our stations from arterial roads. Coordination with other State agencies such as the police and the Corporation will help fulfil commuters demands,” says a Metro Rail official.