City of concrete roads still floats

According to corporation sources, 1,300 km of Chennai’s interior roads that stretch over 5,560 km have been concretised at a cost of Rs 600 crore over the last two years. But this has created its own set of problems. People of some areas are being forced to wade through stagnant slush which fails to permeate into the soil due to the concretisation.

“In some parts of the city the roads have been re-laid ignoring engineering dimensions and this is causing waterlogging. Concrete roads in general are not advisable for a city, as they fail to provide a cushioning effect while driving and the rigid surface arrests the growth of avenue trees and rainwater penetration,” says former chief engineer of the city corporation, A. Swaminathan.

Ask a senior corporation official and he admits there are complaints of water stagnation from a few low-lying areas where stormwater drains are inadequate. “A survey to identify the waterlogging pockets has already begun and as the monsoon sets in the study will be completed. New borwells to tap the rainwater will be in place by the next fiscal to address the issue,” he assures .

But does the corporation mill the roads before relaying them as directed by the high court? A senior corporation engineer claims it does. “In case of narrow and interior roads however, we are not able to use the milling machine and have to explore other means,” he adds.

But DMK floor leader in the city corporation, Subash Chandra Bose, says the corporation has failed to understand that old houses in the city are being flooded in rain due to poor engineering of roads. “The concept of milling and concrete roads has now been around for at least five years, but the authorities have still not addressed the monsoon problems,” he regrets.