| Traffic pile up at Velachery due to MTC buses |
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| Written by Saravanan |
| Tuesday, 02 February 2010 06:26 |
 Driving in Velachery is a not at all safe anymore. Getting hit by vehicles, mainly MTC buses while they are being stopped by ticket inspectors are high. The inordinate delay in checking tickets of commuters at the junction Velachery leads to unbelievable chaos during peak hours almost every day. Scores of vehicles are piled up, one bend the other, for almost a KM. Even after the signal turns green, motorists are made to wait behind the MTC buses that are being checked. On several occasions, motorists tired of waiting in the long queue try to overtake the buses and are hit by vehicles coming from the opposite direction. Scores of vehicles, including cars, Lorries and autos are often stuck here, presenting an incredulous sight. Many appeals have been made by the residents and welfare associations to the MTC to relocate the checking point to a spot a little distance away from the Vijayanagar bus stop which is very congested. But till date no action has been taken they said. However, they are yet to act on these pleas,” said S Krishnan of Velachery. The 150-metre-wide Velachery Main Road now is just 50 metres across at the Vijayanagar Junction. Despite this, hundreds of vehicles from suburban areas such as Tambaram, Madipakkam, Medavakkam, Sholinganallur and Pallikaranai use it to reach various places in the city in the mornings and evenings. The ticket checking at the Vijayanagar stop near the intersection of Velachery Main Road and Taramani Main Road, has further narrowed the road space resulting in frequent traffic snarls. Officials said that every day, on an average, the MTC operates more than 150 services along this route. Every 10 minutes, they said, ticket inspectors have to check a bus. The ticket checking squad must check 45 buses everyday at the Vijayanagar bus stop alone. “Unlike a college bus stop along the stretch where students are rude with the checking inspectors, commuters at the Vijayanagar bus stop are well-mannered and cooperate with the inspectors. So, the latter prefer this bus stop,” according to MTC officials. M. Stephen. Reporter. Anytime chennai news team. Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites           Related Articles
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