No signal of relief for cops after Vardah havoc

Traffic cops, who have been out all day and night on the roads to remove fallen trees and ensure traffic flow, continue to man most of the junctions in the city as the traffic signals are either damaged or have no electricity. However, with all the constraints they managed to put up a brave show and effectively avoided traffic bottlenecks at most part of the city. According to sources, most of the 380 traffic signals in the city have been damaged in the heavy winds and Rs 5 crore has been allotted for repair works. 

Official sources told DTNext that the repair works may take at least two to three months, meaning most part of the city will be having only manual traffic regulation during this period. “All the traffic inspectors have been told to check the signal lights in their respective areas and to see whether they are functioning once the power connections are reinstated,” a senior traffic police official said. He said that some of the traffic signals started functioning after the TNEB reinstated power supply. 

“However, it would take longer to repair the damaged lights and we will have to put additional men to manage traffic at these junctions,” the officer added. The Chennai Traffic police had two sleepless nights, on the day when Vardah hit the city and the next day as fallen trees blocked most of the main roads. “Our men had been on the road even when the cyclone hit Chennai and they along with other departments eased the traffic congestion, allowing stranded people to reach home,” the official said and added that traffic movement had really picked by Wednesday and has nearly normalised on Thursday. 

“On Wednesday the traffic flow was heavy as most people could not go out on Monday and Tuesday. However, with the available manpower, we managed to regularise the flow except for some routine bottlenecks,” the official added.