Delay in replacing the underground sewer line
The delay in replacing the underground sewer line at the Lanka Corner underpass and the traffic jam it causes has irked the Coimbatore Corporation.Mayor R. Venkatachalam, Deputy Mayor N. Karthik and Works Committee Chairman R. Ramaswamy inspected the underpass on Thursday and pulled up the contractor for the delay.With the Corporation pounded by complaints from people of the problems caused by the delay, the Mayor and the others decided to give a taste of public resentment to the contractor.“We have asked the contractor to speed up the work so that we can re-lay the road at the underpass in a couple of days,” the Mayor said in a tone that conveyed the anger of the civic body and that of the public.The underpass is one of the six links between the eastern and western parts of the city. A railway line divides the city into two sections.Four underpasses and two flyovers connect these two.The other underpasses are near Somasundara Mills, Kikani School and near Sivananda Colony.The flyovers are on Avanashi Road and at North Coimbatore (connecting Cross Cut Road with Mettupalayam Road).Of all the underpasses, the one at Lanka Corner (on Big Bazaar Street) has the highest volume of traffic.
Buses from areas beyond the city in the eastern side such as Irugur and from the northern boundary such as Saravanampatti and also from various places within the city take this underpass to reach Ukkadam.Though some buses from Gandhipuram take the Avanashi Flyover and Nawab Hakkim Road to reach Ukkadam, the Lanka Corner underpass still has heavy traffic.The Corporation began a couple of months ago the work to replace an old, worn out sewer line.This blocked the middle section of the underpass that is used by vehicles to proceed from Town Hall to Ramanathapuram and areas beyond it.Now, these vehicles use the section meant for those bound for the railway junction because of the drainage work.Peak hours witness a jam at the underpass and a long line of vehicles up to the signal at the Big Bazaar Street-Goods Shed Road junction.“The contractor has been told of the hardship caused to the people because of the delay.The pit will be covered by this (Thursday) evening and the dug up portion will be re-laid and a fresh tar top provided by next Thursday,” the Mayor said.
