Chennai: As two buses cross on the opposite lanes of Velachery main road near Gandhi road bus stop here, a pile of dust is kicked up to about 10 feet in height.
While male pedestrians whip out their handkerchiefs, the women grab the end of their dupattas or sari to cover their faces. Even motorists riding with their visors open, pull it down instantly as they struggle with visibility for a precious few seconds before the dust settles down.
An arterial bus route road, this treacherous condition of the Velachery main road is bothering residents and shop keepers alike.
S. Ram Kumar, a local resident, said the condition has deteriorated progressively ever since metro water started digging up a previously half-respectable road and turned it into a completely not motorable one.
Thangamanickam, a shop owner on this stretch said metro water had been laying pipes underneath the stretch for what seemed like an eternity.
“The work started more than a year ago. It has not been completed even now. People riding on this road can easily fall down and even if they don’t the two-wheeler riders will have a back-breaking ride,” said Thangamanickam.
Anbu, another shop owner, said the condition worsened after Chennai corporation recently cold milled the road.
“Now, not only is the road filled with dust, it has also become extremely challenging to ride a motorcycle on it after the bitumen was scraped off,” he said.
When contacted, ward 179 councillor S. Murugan, said the metro water work has taken too long to complete. “We wrote to them asking them to mark the portions where the work is still incomplete so that we could at least get to the relaying work,” said Murugan.
“It is an important bus route road and I have asked the department to relay it as early as they can. metro water still has some portions of the road to complete. We will not be laying bitumen on the portions they have identified to us but will relay everywhere else,” he added.
