CHENNAI: All Omni Bus Owners Association on Sunday urged Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to reconsider operating government and southern district bus services from Koyambedu Bus Terminus in the interest of passengers travelling daily from Chennai to southern Tamil Nadu districts.
In a statement, All Omni Bus Owners Association president A Anbalagan said the Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus (KCBT) at Kilambakkam was established to reduce traffic congestion and environmental pollution within Chennai city. However, he claimed that the present arrangement had not provided convenient accessibility or adequate facilities for passengers travelling from Chennai to the southern districts.
He said passengers were now forced to use multiple modes of transport, including private vehicles and additional MTC buses, to reach Kilambakkam, resulting in increased congestion and pollution instead of reducing them.
According to him, while the Kilambakkam terminus had benefited residents in the surrounding areas, it had failed to adequately serve passengers from central and north Chennai. The lack of metro and suburban train connectivity has led to increased use of private cars and two-wheelers, thereby adding to road congestion and environmental pollution, he pointed out.
The association president alleged that decisions regarding shifting services were taken without conducting comprehensive traffic studies, passenger surveys or economic impact assessments.
Highlighting the advantages of Koyambedu, Anbalagan said the terminus was centrally located and well connected through metro rail, city buses and other modes of public transport, enabling passengers from all parts of Chennai to easily access buses bound for southern districts.
He also noted that the ongoing Chennai Port–Maduravoyal Elevated Expressway project is expected to ease congestion in and around Koyambedu once completed.
Claiming that over 10,000 buses operated daily within Chennai for schools, colleges, industries and IT companies, while only around 3,000 intercity buses operated to outstation destinations, he argued that outstation buses alone could not be blamed for the city’s traffic congestion.
Referring to the Deepavali and Pongal festival seasons, Anbalagan said the government itself had advised Omni buses not to enter Kilambakkam due to inadequate space availability, which, according to him, reflected the present limitations in capacity and infrastructure at the terminus.
He urged the state government to consider restoring government and southern district bus services from Koyambedu, citing the interests of more than one crore passengers travelling daily between Chennai and southern districts.