The Jawaharlal Nehru Salai-Perumbur Paper Mills road intersection, well known as Retteri junction, is one of the busiest with a heavy flow of vehicles all through the day. 

The construction of the twin flyover at the junction has made the situation worse for the pedestrians who have to cross the arterial road to reach bus stops. Along with the flyovers, the highways department had proposed to construct a pedestrian subway to ensure safe movement. 

A State Highways Department official said that after the opening of the second flyover connecting Madhavaram to the Koyambedu side of the Jawaharlal Nehru Salai in March, the work on the pedestrian subway was taken up subsequently. “We could not take up the subway construction work simultaneously with the flyover as it required traffic diversion. So the traffic police wanted us to complete flyover over so that vehicle traffic could be diverted to undertake the construction of the underground tunnel across Jawaharlal Nehru Salai,” the official explained. He said the work would be completed by the end of May. 

S Venugopal, a resident of Secretariat Colony at Vinayagapuram said the pedestrian subway would ensure safety of those who wanted to cross the road. “Despite the opening of the flyovers, it is very difficult for senior citizens to cross the busy road. We hope the highways department would provide escalators or lifts at the subway for the benefit of senior citizens,” he demanded.