Nolambur Main Road cries for attention

CHENNAI:  After the recent spell of incessant rains, the condition of Nolambur Main Road, which connects parts of Mogappair West and Nolambur with the Outer Ring Road (ORR-Chennai Bypass), has turned from bad to worse.According to regular commuters, the two-kilometre-odd stretch from Mogappair West Bus Terminus up to the underpass on Chennai Bypass has become a battleground of sorts for motorists, who are forced to manoeuvre potholes to reach areas like Vanagaram, Porur and Tambaram.“We have stopped calling it a road as it has lost all the black top several years ago, while potholes and craters have become the identity for the stretch,” Madhan Mohan, a local resident, who uses the stretch extensively to reach his office at Porur, told City Express.Along the particular damaged stretch, more than five schools and three hospitals are located. Besides, more than 5,000 motorists use the stretch everyday and more than 20,000 people live in the area.Though the stretch remained accessible to all users despite its numerous potholes as it serves a shortcut to Vanagaram and the Chennai Bypass, the recent torrential rains and overflowing water from Ayanambakkam Lake has submerged most of the road near the underpass forcing motorists to use the adjacent road connecting Vaavin to reach other parts of the city.“The poor condition of the stretch leaves those who commute long distance for work with back problems,” said Vinoth, another resident near Priya Kalyana Mandapam.“Most of my friends, who used to go to their offices located in and around Porur on their two-wheelers, have now stopped taking them and instead started using their office cab for pickup and drop,” Vinoth added.According to locals, school children and women going to offices from the locality are finding it extremely difficult to move through the stretch due to big craters and pot holes. “The stretch is in a very bad condition. People find it very difficult to balance their vehicles while taking turn in the junction due to flow of excess rain water from the nearby lake,” Uma, a regular user of the stretch, said. Nolambur, which was earlier a village panchayat near Ambattur Municipality, has now merged with the Chennai Corporation under ward no 143.With the upgradation from panchayat to Corporation, Nolambur local residents have appealed to the local councillor as well as the Chennai Mayor to set the road right for the sake of regular users.