Commuters vie for space as pvt vehicles encroach Ambattur OT Terminus

Besieged with plenty of problems ranging from poor sanitation facilities to incessant traffic jams, the Ambattur OT bus terminus is plagued with severe encroachment by private vehicles, giving commuters a hard time to board buses from the amenity.

Passengers alighting at Ambattur OT bus stand vie for space with private vehicles and share autos as they have become a permanent fixture outside the terminus. “The residents have put forth repeated requests asking the officials to take suitable steps to make the waiting time tolerable. Though bus services have improved, passenger amenities have taken a huge toll here. We have to board buses irrespective of rain and shine here. Several complaints were made over the last few years,” said Shrinkhla Sahai, a commuter.

The Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) is operating more than 60 services to various destinations, including T Nagar (147C) and Anna Square (40 and M40), and many services from Avadi and Poonamallee use this terminus to pick up and drop passengers. A proposal has also been made to construct a bus terminus at Kallikuppam in Ambattur. But, at present, the plan is put on hold.

“Over time, with bus services increasing, the area has become too small to accommodate both the buses and the passengers. Buses frequently stop on the adjacent roads to drop off passengers before entering the terminus in order to avoid overcrowding within the terminus,” another commuter said.

Residents of Old MTH Road, North Park Street and Mounasamy Madam Street are solely dependent on the bus services to connect with other parts of the city. Over the years, MTC has diverted many bus routes to Avadi due to space constraints.

“Commuters depend on share autos to reach places like Madhavaram, Perambur, Kolathur, Ennore, Manali and Thiruvotriyur as bus services are still to match the requirement,” said Shrikanth, a commuter. He further added that the Ambattur residents have been stressing to relocate the bus terminus to standalone depots like Anna Nagar and T Nagar. The MTC can take this into account as there is an exponential increase in bus users. “The presence of share autos, autorickshaws, hawkers further add to the space constraint. Private vehicles are misusing the space as well. A place with proper infrastructure will only help the commuters in the long run,” he concluded.

Adding to the woes, the terminus lacks proper drinking water provision, restrooms and seating arrangements. “We have improved the bus connectivity from Ambattur to other areas in the city. However, other problems will be solved with the creation of a new terminus at Kallikuppam,” said a top official of MTC.