Encroachment, illegal parking leave no space for commuters at Tambaram

Commuters boarding MTC buses from Tambaram West terminus have urged the municipality officials to clear encroachments from the roadside and even pavements. 

The wayside bus terminus located on Grand Southern Trunk (GST) road opposite the railway station is busy throughout the day as several commuters board buses from the suburban train station at Tambaram to reach Avadi, Mannivakkam, Manimangalam, Sriperumbudur, Velachery and Ponnamallee.

With the heavy flow of traffic on GST road, commuters have very little space to walk safely as pavements are occupied by vendors and two-wheelers parked haphazardly. “The stretch on GST road outside the railway station remains crowded with hundreds of people getting in and out of the station. 

It is a big task to walk without coming in contact with a two-wheeler or share autorickshaws from the Tambaram railway station to the bus terminus,” R Ramamoorthi, a resident of Tambaram, said.

The bus stop has also become a halting point for State Transport Corporation buses and private vehicles. “Autorickshaws and share autorickshaws are also parked at the bus stop in an attempt to woo customers. 

As the stretch is too crowded, we have no idea where the buses would halt. As a result, commuters are forced to run helter-skelter to catch their route numbers. 

A few metres away from the bus stop, there are traffic signals meant for both pedestrians and motorists. Whenever the signals turn green, motorists struggle to move forward due to the parking of autorickshaws and buses, thereby causing traffic congestion,” Gomathi Shankar, a resident of Krishna Nagar, Perungalathur. said.

Pointing to the line of refreshment stalls that have come up inside the bus terminus, he said, “As a result, commuters have no other option but to stand in the middle of the road to board buses.” He also complained that the terminus did not have seating facility for the commuters. “Without seating facility, senior citizens and women can be seen squatting on the floor,” he said.

R Malliga, a resident of Vasantham Colony, Tambaram, said that MTC should take steps to modernise the bus terminus by providing facilities to commuters. “Toilets are built on the pavement and it is not maintained properly,” she said.

A bus driver complained that they do not have a restroom at the terminus. “We have no space to sit or eat. So we have to eat the food inside the bus itself,” he lamented.

A Tambaram municipality official said that they would take steps to remove the encroachments from the pavements.