Footpaths double up as parking lots in Postal Colony, push out pedestrians

“Everyone now has cars and a few have more than one. But they don’t have parking space inside their premises. So they tend to park it on the platforms,” said Sriram S, a resident of Postal Colony 1st street. Postal Colony, which has four streets, is an important connecting point for those travelling to Ashok Pillar and T Nagar. 

While the problem has persisted for more than five years now, complaints made by the commuters to the Greater Chennai Corporation have failed to yield any response.

“The authorities have not taken any action against buildings without proper parking lots that habitually tend to violate other construction clauses. The fear of being evicted should be made severe; only then will it have any effect,” he added. 

It is becoming worse each passing day, rued the residents, as all the roads in the colony see more traffic congestions than usual. There are around to 150 houses, including apartments, in Postal Colony. 

“The restaurant owners and other shopkeepers park their vehicles on the platforms. Because of this, the pedestrians are forced to walk on the congested road,” said Kumaresan, another commuter. 

The traffic jam peaks between 9 am to noon and again from 6 pm to 9 pm. These jams invariably add to the noise pollution in the residential neighbourhood, disrupting the peace, said the residents. 

There is also an MTC bus route covering Postal Colony 3rd Street, which connects Ashok pillar and T Nagar. If the street gets blocked due to traffic, the bus has to take an alternative route through the 1st Street where the vehicles are parked. 

“Postal Colony 2nd, 3rd and 4th streets connect Hindu Vidyalaya in Postal Colony, Jawahar Vidyalaya in Ashok Nagar and GRT Mahalakshmi in West Mambalam. Many commuters take the Postal Colony to reach these schools,” said Narayani M, a resident. 

A senior official from Zone 10 acknowledged the problem, adding that the encroachments are being removed periodically. “However, the problem persists as the vehicle population in the locality has been increasing,” he added.