Better accessibility: All-weather mats installed at Marina Blue Flag beach

CHENNAI: The Greater Chennai Corporation has installed all-weather mobility mats in the Marina Blue flag beach to improve access for elderly visitors and persons with disabilities. Earlier, the Blue Flag stretch did not have a ramp but had specialised beach wheelchairs.

According to the GCC, the mats are portable to ensure easy maintenance, unlike the permanent wooden structures installed at the main Marina beach.

In past years, portions of the wooden structure had become unstable or unusable after monsoon conditions, requiring multiple rounds of repair and reinstallation, which has prompted the Corporation to test alternatives that can withstand beach conditions more reliably.

The newly laid mats provide a continuous, stabilised path on the sand and can be repositioned if disturbed by weather, making them a practical option for locations where installing a fixed ramp is not feasible.

Wheelchair users have welcomed the move. "We have suggested adding handrails for support and modifying the mat pattern to reduce vibration," said Sathish, a wheelchair user.

Corporation Commissioner J Kumaragurubaran, in a post on X, said, "As an alternative solution, all-weather mats have been fixed in Marina for the elders and differently abled persons. Feedback is being taken from the users for fine-tuning the design further."