Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore   

Not a motorable dream, this

By Our Staff Reporter

COIMBATORE, JULY 22: The long-winding traffic jams near Usnabad on Nanjundapuram Road have irked residents no end. Traffic flows smoothly until the bend leading to Podanur. But, after that, everything turns chaotic. Commuters going into the suburbs and those entering the city have to manoeuvre their vehicles deftly to escape the twin potholes straddling whatever is left of the tar-topped road.

The road, which comes under the State Highways Department, has been re-laid time and again, but soon falls prey to sand-heaving (caused when water erodes bitumen).

Even on Wednesday, a van carrying school children got stuck in one of the potholes, before residents hauled it out. Regular commuters were caught unawares on Wednesday morning as someone had dumped a load of mud in the middle of the road, creating a speed-breaker of sorts.

"We don't know who did it. Someone has dumped the mud in the night. Probably, one of the lorries ferrying stones and mud from the quarry," says Shafi, a local.

For Suriya and Lily, the heavy traffic means being extra careful while fetching water from the roadside pipe.

"We don't step out of the house unless it is very necessary. And, the kids fret because we keep them inside most of the time. Is it possible to be careful all the time?" they ask.

Kandaswamy, a factory owner, says that despite repeated reminders to the Highways Department and the Corporation, no official has come to inspect the site. However, this morning, a Highways official was at work, trying to break the hardened mound of mud in the middle of the road. "I spotted it by chance when travelling on this road and got workers to break the mound. It was an accident waiting to happen," he said.

The problem, he says, are due to the two waterlines running alongside the road. When the pipes develop a leak, the potholes turn slushy and start eroding the road all over again. "The Corporation must do something about the leak in the Siruvani pipe and the Panchayat must take care of the borewater line."

"Unless the lines are set right, the road will keep eroding," he feels. The Highways Department has already been informed about the condition of the road. Sources in the Department said they had received a complaint about the potholed road and work would be taken up depending on the funds allotted. "The best solution will be to level the road. It is now sloping a bit, leading to this problem," the official said.

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