As the death of a motorist caused by a pothole on Anna Salai on Monday remains fresh in memory, it is a daily struggle for the motorists on Velachery Main Road.
A portion of the road, which is managed by the Bus Route Road division of the Greater Chennai Corporation, is ridden with potholes and craters making it a nightmare to drive on the road. Road cutting at several places by utility agencies, including the Tangedco and the water board, has made matters worse.
Running through the old parts of Velachery, it is a busy road as several government offices, commercial establishments, and multi-storeyed apartments exist all along the arterial way.
Motorists have a tough time, particularly during the rainy season. With rainwater pumped out from the buildings on to the road, it becomes impossible to drive on it in the absence of a stormwater drain.
S. Moorthy, a resident of Dhandeeswaram Nagar, said traversing through the stretch from Dhandeeswaram junction to Vijayanagar junction was a nightmare as the road has not been properly relaid after being dug up a few weeks ago. The road was newly paved only a few months ago, he added.
Stormwater drain
The residents of Velachery on Tuesday complained about the poor condition of the road to Corporation Commissioner Gagandeep Singh Bedi who immediately deputed a team of senior officials to take steps to repair the road.
A senior official said the road where water was stagnating had been cleared and concrete mix dumped to fill the potholes. The civic body proposed to build a stormwater drain next year at the spot to find a permanent solution to the problem of flooding, he added.