Traffic goes haywire at Flowers Road-Poonamallee High Road junction

Commuters in Kilpauk and Purasawalkam face traffic snarls at Flowers Road-Poonamallee High Road junction during peak hours.

Road-users commuting through Ormes Road and Flowers Road in Kilpauk and Purasawalkam to reach EVR Periyar Salai (Poonamallee High Road) have voiced concern over frequent traffic snarls during peak hours at the junction close to the signal near the Nehru Park Metro Rail station.

They say that it takes more time to cross the few-metre stretch at the junction where Flowers Road from Purasawalkam joins the arterial Poonamallee High Road. Though traffic congestion has become a norm in recent times along the Poonamallee High Road owing to the increase in the volume of vehicles and the ongoing Metro Rail phase-II project at Kilpauk, commuters point out that lack of regulation to streamline the influx of vehicles from Flowers Road and the newly introduced U-turn near the Nehru Park Metro Rail station have been causing snarls.

M. Saravanan, a commuter from Anna Nagar, says several road-users, especially office-goers, from Mogappair, Anna Nagar, and Kilpauk choose to commute through Kilpauk Garden, Ormes Road, and Flowers Road to reach Poonamallee High Road. However, in recent months, the traffic congestion at the Flowers Road-Poonamallee High Road junction has increased, and vehicles are backing up.

“It is tiresome to commute on this stretch because of traffic snarls between 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. A few months ago, the traffic police had introduced a U-turn near the Nehru Park Metro Rail station, just a few metres from the traffic signal, which is creating a lot of trouble. Many road-users block the road to take the U-turn. Some commuters take the wrong route from the other side to cross the Poonamallee High Road through the narrow opening in the median,” says R. Abinaya, another commuter.

The bumper-to-bumper traffic moves at a snail’s pace across such a small stretch, road-users complain. Vehicles pile on both Poonamallee High Road and Flowers Road.

They also point to the violation of traffic rules, such as crossing the road from the wrong side and parking vehicles in the no-parking areas on Flowers Road. A senior police officer said traffic policemen had been deployed to regulate the movement of vehicles near the junction. Steps would be taken to prevent congestion and the violation of the rules.