CHENNAI: With the long-awaited MRTS extension between Velachery and St Thomas Mount now operational, residents around the newly opened Puzhuthivakkam and Adambakkam stations say better last-mile bus connectivity remains a pressing need.
Residents say several interior neighbourhoods surrounding the stations still lack adequate bus access, particularly the small bus service, forcing commuters to walk long distances or rely on share autos to reach the suburban or Metro Rail station, or bus stops.
"We need to walk two to four km to reach a stop. For regular commuters, it becomes extremely difficult," said Saravana Kumar, founder of Madipakkam Social Service.
Areas such as Kuberan Nagar and Sadhasiva Nagar in Madipakkam, Mahalakshmi Nagar in Adambakkam, and residential pockets around Keelkattalai, Moovarasanpettai are among the densely populated neighbourhoods where residents are struggling with limited bus connectivity for decades.
With narrow interior roads, many of these neighbourhoods can only be served by mini buses or feeder services. However, residents say bus services have reduced in recent years due to stormwater drain and Metro Rail construction works across the area.
"Kuberan Nagar has no mini bus connectivity. We either go to Sadhasiva Nagar or Madipakkam bus stand. There are no frequent mini bus services to Puzhuthivakkam or Velachery or Alandur, " said Selvaraju, a resident.
"Since last week, bus frequency has improved from Velachery to Puzhuthivakkam. But it's still not enough and they need to improve connectivity to Nanganallur too," said Mohan Babu of Puzhuthivakkam.
Resident associations say buses serving the area should be planned so that routes cover both Puzhuthivakkam and Adambakkam MRTS stations before heading towards major transit points such as Guindy or Alandur. They note that commuters getting down at these stations often travel onwards to neighbourhoods such as Madipakkam, Ullagaram, Keezhkattalai and it needs better connectivity
Earlier this month, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) had floated a tender for 300 seven-metre, low-floor AC feeder buses intended to connect interior residential areas with major public transport nodes, including MRTS and suburban railway stations.
"Robust first and last-mile connectivity that allows commuters to access the transport by not walking less than 400m is the vision behind the initiative," said a senior MTC official, adding that it will be eventually implemented in a phased manner.