CHENNAI: Though the drive from Chennai Central railway station to Tiruvottiyur via Ennore High Road should take only half an hour at the max, the absence of two rail overbridges drags the commute time to more than 90 minutes. While Greater Chennai Corporation is working on a Rs 137 crore rail overbridge project, the second overbridge is yet to attract the attention of the civil body. With the traffic on Tiruvottiyur High Road being diverted to Ennore High Road due to the ongoing metro rail work, acute traffic jam congests the 10km long road.The Ennore Road via Walltax Road and Cochrane Basin Road is the shortest route connecting Central Chennai and Tiruvottiyur, the northern gateway for Chennai.A V S Marimuthu, co-convenor of North Chennai People Rights Federation, said, “Ennore High Road does not have any deviations, which is the direct road linking Chennai Central railway station and Tiruvottiyur. While a stretch of Cochrane Basin Road — the entry point of Ennore High Road — has been encroached, two railway crossings have become a major bottleneck for the smooth flow of traffic.”Traffic comes to a grinding halt as each railway gate is closed at least five times daily. Vehicles pile up for at least 1km adversely affecting the traffic. B Govindaraj, who runs a tea shop nearby, said, “It is a horrible experience for commuters. In a bid to ease the traffic, former chief minister J Jayalalithaa had announced a rail overbridges and the soil test was conducted. However, the work seems to have been grounded in the area falling under the R K Nagar assembly constituency.”A similar railway crossing at Tondiarpet marshalling yard adds miseries to motorists. Sekar, a local, said vehicles get queued up on either side for an hour. “Though people in Tiruvottiyur prefer this road, the railway crossings take a heavy toll on their journey time,” he said.Data available with the traffic police show Ennore Expressway records a traffic of 1,343 vehicles an hour during the peak morning hours, and 1,298 vehicles an hour in the evening. On Tiruvottiyur High Road, it is 915 vehicles and 761 vehicles an hour during the peak morning and evening hours respectively.When contacted, a senior GCC official said steps are being taken to begin the construction of the rail overbridgess.

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