Hit by crowded buses, commuters seek additional originating services

The cutting down of services originating from the ICF bus terminus to various parts of the city over the years to just one now has led commuters frequenting the stop wanting the MTC management to introduce additional route services.

In a step causing anguish among locals, various bus route services originating from the ICF terminus were shifted elsewhere, with the 47A route service to Tiruvanmiyur alone now being operated from the bus station.

“We have been demanding MTC authorities to introduce new bus route services to CMBT and Broadway from the terminus for the past several years. Though there are buses from the Villivakkam and Ayanavaram termini passing through the ICF terminus, it will always be crowded during peak hours. If buses start from the ICF terminus, we will at least get a place to stand, if not a seat in the vehicle,” S Anandhi, an employee with a private company at Parry’s Corner, said.

Kousalya, another commuter and a resident of ICF quarters, recalled that bus route services 7B (to Broadway), 29C (to Besant Nagar) and 120 (to Broadway) were plying from the ICF terminus. “We don’t know why these route services were shifted to other termini. Many people living in GKM Colony and Kolathur would also come here to board the buses to reach their destination,” she said.

The ICF terminus located at the junction of the Konnur High Road and ICF Link Road is one of the oldest termini in the city. The terminus has space to accommodate three buses at a time. “The terminus used to be bigger than what it is now. The space was reduced after the ICF put up a gate barricading the terminus, following which some of the bus route services were shifted to other termini,” recalled a bus conductor, who has been serving in the terminus since 2011.

A major complaint among commuters at the ICF terminus is the lack of sunshade here. “There is no space in the terminus for a person to take shelter from the hot sun or in the event of rain. There is a waiting spot with a roof at a corner of the terminus which would mostly be occupied either by the bus crew or others,” said S Raman, an employee with ICF. The timekeeper’s cabin at the terminus seems to be the only provision getting respite from harsh weather Besides, a bus driver complained that a single trip from Tiruvanmiyur to ICF would take at least one-and-a-half hours. “When we reach the ICF terminus, there will not be a toilet where we can relieve ourselves. We have been demanding the management to construct a restroom with a toilet for a long time, but it has remained unfulfilled,” the driver said.

An official of the MTC, however, said that they were not able to construct a shelter at the terminus as the land belonged to ICF.