Passengers left high & dry at Koyambedu Omni Bus terminus after CMDA officials prevented boarding

CHENNAI: Tension and heated arguments prevailed at Omni Bus Terminus at Koyambedu on Wednesday evening after the CMDA officials blocked passengers' entry to board southbound Omni buses and directed them to Kilambakkam terminus.

A bus driver and a CMDA official exchanged blows at the heat of the moment and police detained the driver.

Unaware of the Transport Commissioner's order to shift the operation of the southbound Omni buses to Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus at Kilambakkam from Thursday at 7 pm onwards, many passengers were shocked and engaged in a heated argument with the CMDA personnel at the terminus who asked them to take MTC buses to the new terminus to board the Omni buses there.

The standoff between the transport department and Omni bus operators continued till the eleventh hour affecting the travel plans of passengers. The Omnibus operators maintained till the last moment that they would operate the southbound buses from Koyambedu while the Transport Commissioner was issuing an order after an order to restrict the bus operation with passengers beyond Kilambakkam.

Jesu Raj, a passenger travelling to Tirunelveli, along with his sister was not allowed to enter the omnibus terminus.

"I have booked tickets in an omni bus which was scheduled to leave at 8 pm. Around 7 pm, I got a call from the bus operator asking to arrive at Koyambedu by 7.30 pm and the bus would not stop en route. However, the CMDA officials are not letting us inside and asking to take an MTC bus to reach Kilambakkam to board the Omni bus from there, " he said.

CMDA member secretary Anshul Mishra who inspected the Omni bus terminus blamed the Omni bus operators for the inconvenience caused to the passengers. "They did not inform the passengers about the shifting of operation to Kilambakkam. Even after the Transport Commissioner issued an order on January 22, the Omni Bus operators issued a statement claiming that they will operate from Koyambedu, " he said, adding that 250 omnibuses can be parked at Kilambakkam terminus at any point in time.

Tamil Nadu Omni Bus Owners Association vice president Allah Baksh said that passengers are being unnecessarily harassed by shifting the operation to Kilambakkam without adequate parking facilities for the Omni buses. "No southbound omnibuses are being allowed to carry passengers from Koyambedu.

Instead, CMDA officials are directing the passenger to take MTC buses to reach the new terminus and board the omnibuses from there," he said.

All Omni Bus Owners Association president A Anbalagan said that the bus operators are willing to cooperate with the government and shift operations to Kilambakkam after the Omni Bus parking facility at Mudichur was made ready.

"If the government restricted the bus operation at Koyambedu, we will move a contempt petition against the Transport Commission, CMDA member secretary, Police Commissioner and Home Secretary for violating the Madras High Court order in 2003 that allowed bus operation within the city limits, " he said.

Indumathi, DRO, CMDA said that only Omni buses plying via ECR, Vellore, Redhills and Chittoor would be allowed to operate from Koyambedu terminus from Thursday.