Bus stand @ Govt.Hospital renovated
The Coimbatore Corporation's bus stand in front of Coimbatore Medical College Hospital on Tiruchi Road is being given a facelift. Tile flooring, fresh coat of paint and granite slabs on the walls are some of the works that are on as part of the Rs.35-lakh renovation project.Out of the total project cost, a fresh tar top for the road inside the stand is being provided at Rs.12 lakh. A high mast lamp is to be installed at Rs.5 lakh.More than 100 steel chairs will also be provided for the waiting passengers. Besides, a public toilet will also be built to prevent abuse of the stand.The Corporation will spend only on the road and high mast lamp.The rest of the project cost will be met by a private firm that has offered to renovate and maintain the stand for six years, according to Mayor R. Venkatachalam.The firm has offered to construct an arch and put up a board displaying `Coimbatore Corporation Bus Stand.' It has also offered to pay power consumption charges.
The Corporation will, however, maintain the road during the contract period. The civic body will take over the stand if the maintenance of the stand by the firm is not satisfactory or if any contract condition is violated.The work brings relief to office-goers, students and also patients to the hospital. Built 10 years ago at Rs.3 lakh, the stand has so far been more of a shelter for beggars and even poor patients discarded by relatives.People living in the far-flung eastern sections of the city such as Ondipudur or the suburbs alight at this stand to take another bus to reach their offices in Gandhipuram.
Till the Corporation drew up a renovation plan in January, neither they nor those visiting the hospital had been able to wait at any of the bays marked for the buses.All these had been taken over by the beggars. Besides, stench from the waste dumped behind the stand drove people towards the main road to wait for buses.With many buses bound for Ukkadam and various other areas using the stand, it had always been a risky rush to board the vehicles at the exit point of the stand.As a first step towards improving the stand, the Corporation had razed a commercial complex at the entrance.The rear of the building had always been used as a public toilet.The Corporation has now removed a traffic island and will replace it with a smaller one so that there is more space to ensure smooth flow of traffic.
