What began with a bang has, according to sources, ended on a completely silent note. It is said that the idea of an elevated road along the Adyar River which had been announced a few months ago has been given up. And the credit for getting it to be abandoned goes not to those who were protesting about it, but to a few high-profile real estate transactions, it would appear.

The Government, it will be remembered, had announced the construction of three sets of elevated roads in the city. The first was planned from Maduravoyal to the Port and work has already begun on this. The second was to begin at the lighthouse on the Marina and proceed south along the coast, cutting across the Adyar near the Theosophical Society and connect to Kottivakkam. This is at present facing a barrage of protests from the fishermen facing eviction as well as environmentalists. The third was to run parallel to the Adyar.

The last named was to be a six-lane elevated road along the river from the Adyar Bridge to Saidapet via Kotturpuram. This was to decongest Sardar Patel Road. Encroachments were removed along this stretch in 2007 but after that little has been heard about the project. Environmentalists had cried foul over this attempt to build a road. It was feared that the logical conclusion of this road would be along the creek and cut off the wetland from the high tide, which is a major source of water to it. The Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited (TNUIFSL) had also decided to take up an Adyar River Front Project as the first part of the Rs. 2,300-crore Chennai Circular Corridor. The financial services firm had decided to clean up the Adyar, use the Adyar Creek, and build a dedicated carriageway on both sides of the river for a Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) to reduce traffic congestion. From Ramapuram to Porur-Poonamallee, the BRTS was to be on an elevated corridor that would connect with the Chennai bypass (Maduravoyal to Manali). The TNUIFSL had brought out a 10-minute video to promote this project and had also asked international consultants to draw up a feasibility plan. Rather strangely, tenders for assessing the feasibility of this had been called for by the Adyar Poonga Trust which was supposed to restore the Adyar Creek!

It is now reliably learnt that the idea of building such roads along the Adyar has been given a quiet burial. Apparently, a couple of high profile land deals have taken place in the Kotturpuram area and this has ensured this change of mind. Consequent to this, a tree-planting drive has begun along the banks of the river. It will be recalled that, a year ago, the alignment of the flyover along Turnbulls Road-Cenotaph Road was changed to suit certain vested interests. This modification resulted in a flyover that has only added to the congestion along that route. It is quite clear that the real estate lobby is able to make any changes it wants, no matter what benefits the public.

The elevated road along the beach, which in one stroke will destroy our ecology and also the city’s open skyline, is still on the cards. Obviously, our fishermen and environmentalists do not have the necessary clout to effect any change.