Long wait at Anna Nagar roundabout signal irks commuters

Long wait times at Anna Nagar roundabout signal, manual operation at peak hours, & fines for violations cause difficulty for commuters.

The wait time at each traffic signal at Anna Nagar roundabout signal is quite long, according to commuters.

The roundabout signal, which is among the few in the city to have a high wait of about 180 seconds, has irked many people. Though they commend the functioning of it, they find it difficult to navigate the signal as there is no free left turn too.

“At peak hours, the traffic police maintain a manual signal and it goes on for longer than 180 seconds. This means you could be spending a good five to seven minutes at the signal. They make sure to clear out the entire stretch before switching. This causes a lot of difficulty for passengers,” says K. Ashokan, a resident of Anna Nagar.

The roundabout signal is the conjunction from the Shanti Colony, Chintamani, Thirumangalam, and K4 Police Station signals. As most of the signals are automatic, traffic is piling, forcing the police to move to manual operation of signals at the roundabout to ensure a smooth flow of traffic.

There are others who are of the opinion that the vehicle movement at the signal has improved in the last two months. “Initially, when the cameras were installed, there used to be a 90-second signal and then 30 seconds to move, which meant you could be stuck at the signal longer before you could even move to the front of the signal,” says A. Ravi, an autorickshaw driver.

“If you want to go to Egmore or Central Station, there is no way you can go without touching Anna Nagar. The number of vehicles plying on this stretch is much more. Hence, here is always a heavy traffic flow. If it’s not switched to the manual mode of operation at peak hours in the morning and evening, traffic would only keep increasing and back up as far as the Shanthi Colony stretch,” says K. Chitra, an officer of the Greater Chennai Police.

The cameras that were installed at the signal register the numbers of the vehicles which violate traffic rules and immediately issues a fine. Many have accumulated a fine of over ₹10,000 for various violations at the signal. “I have about ₹30,000 accumulated in fines at the signal. Even if it’s just the tip of the wheel of a vehicle that has crossed the stop line, a fine was imposed,” said Bhuvaneshwaran Parakasam, a frequent commuter.