Damaged parts of Lattice Bridge Road, stretch below Adyar flyover leave commuters frustrated

Ever since construction work of Chennai Metro Rail’s phase II project commenced, it has been a bumpy ride for commuters travelling through some locations in Adyar.

In some areas along the Lattice Bridge Road in Adyar, including the stretches near the Adyar Telephone Exchange, the Sardar Patel Road-Lattice Bridge Road Junction, and below the Adyar flyover, commuters have been grappling with poorly maintained roads.

As part of the 118.9-km phase II construction, Chennai Metro Rail has been building underground networks in locations like Adyar, Thiruvanmiyur, and Greenways Road. These areas are covered under corridor 3, which stretches from Madhavaram to Siruseri via Adyar. To build the stations, traffic diversions too have been in effect for many months now, causing inconvenience to residents and commuters.

Senthilkumaran, an autorickshaw driver who frequently commutes via Adyar, Thiruvanmiyur, and the East Coast Road (ECR), says, besides having to experience backpain due to frequent rides on damaged roads in the area, he has also been spending a lot of money on vehicle maintenance.

“I have seen motorists tripping and falling in some of these locations. It is one of the crucial roads providing connectivity to ECR. Shouldn’t the authorities take steps to restore it after they start station work? If it rains, I don’t take my vehicle out because one can never know where there is an elevation or a pothole,” he added.

Stretch below Adyar flyover

Krishnakumar, a resident of Adyar, says, it is particularly difficult to drive below the Adyar flyover, as the road is in poor shape. Thousands of vehicles travelling from Adyar, ECR, and Thiruvanmiyur ply under the flyover to get to places including Mandaveli, Mylapore, and Gandhi Nagar.

“Those travelling from Lattice Bridge Road necessarily go under the flyover. Similarly, those coming from Durgabai Deshmukh Road and wanting to go Gandhi Nagar, make a U-turn under the flyover and subsequently take the left. Due to the ongoing Metro Rail station work under the flyover, that space is very constricted. Vehicles have to very carefully cross this space under the flyover since the road is damaged,” he added.

Owing to this, vehicles frequently slow down, and the congestion gets worse during peak hours, he added.