Metro Rail work causes traffic congestion on Old Mahabalipuram Road

The busy four-lane Rajiv Gandhi Salai that carries over 1.50 lakh vehicles a day has been reduced to a two-lane road because of the Metro Rail work along the median

Vehicular traffic on Rajiv Gandhi Salai has been badly affected by the Chennai Metro Rail Ltd.’s work to construct an elevated corridor.

The busy four-lane expressway that carries over 1.50 lakh vehicles a day has been reduced to two-way on both sides because of the work along the median. With road space shrinking, motorists spending longer hours on the road moving through the barricaded stretches and thick dust.

With service lanes closed and barricades put up at several stretches, driving on the road has become a nightmare, said residents and commuters.

Chennai Metro Rail’s Phase 2 coverage extends to 118.9 km and the Madhavaram to SIPCOT corridor runs through OMR up to SIPCOT in Siruseri. Between Madhavaram and Taramani, the mass rapid system is underground and then an elevated corridor up to Siruseri.

“It takes 10 minutes to cover 1 km even in the afternoon. There is no space on the road. I require 20 minutes to reach Semmanchery from Metukkuppam in the morning to go to school. But in the return direction, the traffic is so much that it takes me 45 minutes,” said Vikram, a school van driver. 

R. Anandan of OMR Lorry Owners’ Association said that with kerb stones that divide the main carriageway from the service lanes being removed on several stretches, traffic jams have become common. “People visiting the commercial establishments and shops on the sides usually park their vehicles on the service lanes where driving in both directions is permitted. However, with the service lanes becoming part of the main carriageway at some stretches, traffic at the extremes has gone haywire,” he said.