SWD work damages traffic signal

With the facility going defunct, chaos rules at Kattupakkam intersection

It is two months since the traffic signal at the intersection of Mount-Poonamallee Main Road and Link Road in Kattupakkam went out of order. Its electrical cables got damaged when a stormwater drain widening work was being carried out near the intersection.

According to Chennai Traffic Police, earth movers that were used to deepen the drains could have damaged the electrical cables at the traffic signal. As per norms, such a damage should be rectified by the department that is in charge of the project. In this case, it is State Highways that is supposed to repair the traffic signal.

Residents of the locality say that the defunct signal poses a threat to the safety of motorists especially at night, as the intersection is poorly-lit due to an inadequate number of street lights. Moreover, the sodium-vapour lamps have not been replaced with LED lamps.

The signal is located on a portion of Mount-Poonamallee Main Road which is narrow. But the junction witnesses heavy traffic because buses belonging to Metropolitan Transport Corporation and various educational institutions pass through it. Besides, motorists coming from Vanagaram and Thiruverukadu use this intersection. “As the signal is not working, it creates chaos at the junction and slows down vehicular movement,” says S. Rajesh, a resident of Poonamallee. Except for a small stretch, the SWD work has been completed. The entire work will be over in a month, says State Highways officials. The drain has been enlarged to a width of three feet and a depth of six feet to facilitate inflow of more rainwater thereby preventing inundation during monsoon.

“The needful will be done at the earliest,” says police.

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