The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : VC seeks master plan to check traffic problems

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 22, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

VC seeks master plan to check traffic problems

Staff Reporter

Says traffic congestion will affect supply of essential services

HANDBOOK FOR BEGINNERS: D. Viswanathan releasing the book `Human Settlements' at a function on Monday. — Photo: S.R. Raghunathan

CHENNAI : Planners, architects and engineers should come up with a master plan to check Chennai's spiralling traffic problems arising out of the city's growth, urged Anna University vice-chancellor D. Viswanathan on Monday.

Unless the centre of activity shifts out of the metropolitan area, traffic snarls and congestion would affect supply of essential services and articles, including water. He was speaking after releasing a book by the former planner of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA), K.R. Thooyavan, on human settlements and the need for planning.

The vice-chancellor said the book `Human Settlements — A Planning Guide to Beginners' was highly relevant. "In Chennai you are not able to reach your destinations on time now. Planners need to come out with a solution," he said. Dean of School of Architecture and Planning S. Ravi said the author covers topics ranging from the standard width of a street to utopian concepts of town planning. The first copy, priced at Rs. 350, was handed to a retired bureaucrat A.M. Swaminathan.

CMDA chief planner and chairman of Institute of Town Planning, S. Santhanam, also spoke.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail