Despite the presence of a bi-directional flyover, traffic at the Vadapalani junction seems to be a matter of concern at peak hours in the morning and the evening because of infrastructure issues.
Residents and commercial establishments say this is predominantly owing to the ongoing Metro Rail project on the Vadapalani stretch and Arcot Road.
Improvement seen
Residents here point out that compared with the situation three years ago, the traffic chaos has eased. “After the flyover was opened, the traffic eased gradually. The new bus terminus at Kilambakkam has also reduced he volume of traffic on this stretch,” says S. Viji, resident of Vadapalani.
According to residents, traffic is high on three occasions. First, at weekends there is a heavy footfall at a mall nearby and vehicle movement is slow.
During the festival days, the famous Vadapalani Murugan Temple attracts huge crowds. The street heading towards the temple is just a few metres away from the junction. And any new film release at some of the popular cinema halls around the junction also means huge traffic jams. Shopkeepers in the area say that during week days vehicles keep queuing right outside a scan centre, a few metres near the junction.
“People coming to the scan centre park their cars and two-wheelers right outside the building and this occupies a huge amount of space, disrupting the movement of vehicles. Vehicles heading from Koyambedu to Arcot Road find it difficult to move fast because of the parked vehicles,” said a shop-owner.
Locals also point out that water keeps seeping into the road especially right at the junction itself. This issue was highlighted by many people.
“There is some water leakage at the junction (a few metres from the R8 Vadapalani police station), which causes inconvenience to commuters. People may skid and fall,” the a shop owner says.
Overflowing sewage
One could also spot overflowing sewage at many places around the junction. “We don’t know where the sewage comes from, but it is a matter of concern to commuters,” says R. Mahalakshmi, who uses the junction to go to work every day.
The locals say that if infrastructure issues are rectified, commuting will be much more easier as the junction leads to some of the key destinations in the city.
