The Chennai Metro Rail project has certainly made its presence felt, and its not all sunshine and roses. There’s no doubt that public works are owed the people’s support in putting up with short-term inconveniences – for instance, traffic diversions are to be expected as part of establishing new metro rail operations – but a slew of media reports these past few months have given cause to wonder whether the project could have been planned better.
For instance, news emerged in August that the metro rail construction works have damaged storm water drain networks in multiple parts of the city. The findings were part of a five-member joint study conducted by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), IIT Madras, Tamil Nadu Road Development Company (TNRDC) and the disaster management department. A report in the Times of India carried the details of the study – the storm water drains at Barnaby Road,Millers Road, Purasawalkam High Road, NSK Salai, Indira Nagar, DGS Dhinakaran Salai and Perambur Barracks Road were found to be compromised, and a list of repair works were recommended before October to reduce the risk of flooding. The committee reportedly proposed the construction of new drains, water retention wells, new pipes with larger diameters and the provision of additional motors on OMR, Arcot Road, CTH Road, Villivakam and Mandeveli; new drains in Luz Church Road to divert water to Buckingham Canal and prevent flooding in Venus Colony, Poes Garden, Cathedral Road and TTK Road; and a culvert near Meenakshi College on Arcot Road to allow water to drain into Trustpuram Canal and prevent flooding in Parangusapuram, Azeez Nagar and its environs.
Presumably, the above repair works are in progress. Nevertheless, it is disappointing that the metro rail project did not account for the adverse impact it could have on other essential public infrastructure; considering that the city braces itself for heartbreakingly expensive floods every year, it is hard to imagine why storm water drain networks were handled so callously in the course of its work. The additional cost of repair to the exchequer remains to be seen.
It’s not just the SWDs. Traffic congestion is par for the course when it comes to a metro rail project, and nothing much will be said about it here. However, Chennai’s pedestrians are arguably carrying a relatively higher burden of inconvenience due to a lack of provision as well as unchecked traffic violations. In OMR, for instance, six pedestrian overbridges have been removed for metro rail work, making it harder for those wishing to cross the road; and across different pockets of the city, footpaths -already in short supply – are blatantly encroached upon by two-wheelers and motorists wishing to dodge traffic diversions. At Perumbakkam, autos and bikes are reportedly parked on the footpath.
An article in Citizen Matters by Gangadharan points out that the official speed limit in construction zones is 10 kilometers per hour – a rule that unaware motorists violate, putting those commuting on foot at risk.
Last month, the Mylapore Times reported that a group of residents from RA Puram had met local traffic police officers to draw their attention to issues caused by Chennai Metro rail work. The people asked for traffic blinkers, zebra crossings, speed breakers, No Parking boards, regulation for one side parking on roads and frequent patrolling to prevent traffic violations. According to the news report, the Assistant Commissioner gave the residents assurance that they would see an improvement in about twenty days. While heartening, in an ideal world some of these requests would have been provided for unasked as part of mitigating disruptions to local infrastructure.
‘Inconvenience today for a better tomorrow’ is the phrase often seen at the metro rail work sites. A fair enough ask under normal circumstances. But in this case, it is the public’s tolerance that seems to be underappreciated by the authorities. Better planning will serve well the project as well as the people.