Chennai: It was Monday morning blues for commuters heading back to work after Pongal break with traffic snarls across GST Road, particularly in the suburbs.
Additional government and private buses returning from Southern districts after Pongal vacation with their prolonged halts clogged the 10-km stretch from Tambaram to Vandalur.
Local residents blamed the police force for not acting at the right time. While the police successfully managed the situation during Deepavali, lack of force worsened the situation.
“I took one hour to reach the 1-kilometre distance from Perungalathur to Tambaram. Had more force been deployed, haphazard parking on the highway road could have been restricted,” said G. Udaya, a resident.
Buses, which started reaching the suburbs as early as 5 pm from districts such as Madurai and Dindugal prolonged the halting time, creating a huge bottleneck during peak hour.
Commuters questioned the absence of police personnel during rush hour. “There were just four to five officials from Tambaram to Vandalur. Additional force came in after 10 am,” said F. Haseena, a regular commuter.
