Chennai

More than 16 months after the work on the limited use subway (LUS) replacing the existing railway line in Chromepet began, the Rs 7.55-crore project has hit a roadblock as the state highways department is finding it difficult to acquire land to construct ramps on either side of the rail line. The department needs 21 metres on either side of the level-crossing.

Originally, the project was expected to be completed in a year after the work started on Febuary 27, 2009. Works by the Southern Railway have been moving at a snail’s pace and not even 10% of the total work has been completed. While the project has been facing opposition from around 400 families who live on either side of the level-crossing, the private contractor appointed by the Southern Railway has diverted its labourers to other sites, causing delay, sources said.

“The affected families want us to abandon the project. For the past six months, not much work has been happening. We took up the issue with the Kancheepuram collector who visited the project site a couple of times along with state labour minister TM Anbarasan. But, there has been little progress,” said an official.

According to officials of the state highways, in 1998, the Southern Railway decided to replace the level-crossing with a pedestrian subway. However, due to delay in executing it, state highways was roped in in 2008 and the project was re-designed as a road under bridge (RUB), as it would allow all vehicles including MTC buses to use the subway.

However, objections by the affected families made the Pallavaram municipality pass a resolution in its monthly council meeting in late 2008 to change the project design into a limited use subway of 33 metres length, 8.3 metres width and 3.5 metres height – enough space for only a car to pass through.

The multi-crore project was jointly done by the Southern Railway and the Chennai Metropolitan Development Projects wing of the state highways. “The Radha Nagar level crossing, where the subway is coming up, was a crucial link for residents of interior areas of Old Pallavaram to reach Grand Southern Trunk (GST) Road. Motorists wanting to reach the Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road and the Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) also had to cross it,” said Pallavaram municipal chairman E Karunanidhi. According to the blueprint, the subway could be used by two-wheelers, autos, cars and jeeps.

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