Following frequent accidents, especially at night, at the vehicular crossing in front of the police station in Thirumullaivoyal on Chennai–Tiruvallur High (CTH) Road, the State Highways Department has closed it with steel barricades.
A small passageway has been left in the median, and this is meant for motorcyclists and pedestrians to cross the road.
Now, motorists coming from EVR Nagammai Nagar use the narrow Dr. Ambedkar Street along the police station to cross CTH Road using the vehicular crossing there.
As the spot around the police station does not have adequate street lights, especially at the intersection of Dr. Ambedkar Street and CTH Road, motorists coming from Thirumullaivoyal and driving down CTH Road fail to notice motorists at the intersection, and this has resulted in accidents, including fatalities.
Dr. Ambedkar Street, which is maintained by the Avadi municipality, has old sodium vapour street lights that are often in disrepair.
“The stretch has too many vehicular crossings especially within a distance of around one kilometre. As a preventive measure, we requested the highways department to close one of the crossings,” police sources say.
The section of CTH Road between Dr. Ambedkar statue in Thirumullaivoyal and the bus terminus in Avadi, which is around two kilometres long, was widened and re-laid two years ago.
Interestingly, more than 10 vehicular crossings are located between these two spots, and this, coupled with poor illumination, has been contributing to frequent accidents on this section. Most of the vehicular crossings found between these two spots are located at intersection of streets, institutions like Murugappa Polytechnique Institute and Tami Nadu Special Police Regimental Centre.
However, due to frequent accidents at many of these crossings, the State Highways Department installed steel barricades at a few crossings, including at the crossing in front of Tube Products of India to allow its staff to cross the road safely.
Similarly, the vehicular crossing in front of Murugappa Polytechnique Institute is also kept open mainly for its students to reach the bus stop, which is located opposite the Institute. As the stretch is less congested, motorists come at a breakneck speed, which has been causing accidents. “More safety measures such as installation of reflectors at intersections; and public utilities will be put in place on this accident-prone stretch soon,” says a State Highways official.
Other crossings
* A vehicular crossing, a few metres before the traffic signal, at Anna Nagar West bus terminus on Jawaharlal Nehru main road was created by the State Highways by demolishing the concrete median. Frequents accidents involving vehicles on the carriageway and those taking U turn at the new crossing were reported, mainly due to lack of sign boards and the wide carriageway with no speed control mechanism.
* On Grand Northern Trunk (GNT) Road, between Madhavaram and Moolakadai roundtanas, there are six vehicular crossings. A majority of them are too narrow and does not even allow a bus to pass through it.
* A stretch of Ambattur Old Town, between the bus terminus and a government school, is also prone to accidents due to gaps on the median. Residents are waiting to see authorities take some steps to close them or narrow their width.