Temporary bus stand to tide over rush

A temporary bus stand will become operational from October 15 at the Military grounds in Mannarpuram in order to avo0id traffic congestion near the Central Bus Stand, where construction work on a major flyover is underway. The decision has been taken in view of the impending festival rush when several additional buses would be operated by the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC). Meanwhile, the existing Central Bus Stand would continue functioning as the city buses would be operated from there.

The construction work of the flyover, which connects roads leading to Madurai, Dindigul, E Pudhur and Central Bus Stand gained pace few months ago due to which traffic diversions came into play. The vehicular movement around Aristo roundabout was diverted through Trichy railway junction roundabout.

With Diwali festival round the corner, there will be heavy traffic in the city as people would come to the city for their purchases. Taking into consideration the sea of crowd that would trickle in, the Trichy Corporation, police and revenue departments sent a proposal to the army to give approval for setting up a makeshift bus stand in their grounds. The city police said the proposal for was accepted by the army and the bus stand would now begin functioning from October 15.

With the setting up of the temporary bus stand, buses plying on Madurai, Thanjavur and Pudukkottai routes will be operated from here. Private buses will also follow suit, officials said. However, buses bound for other destinations will be operated from Central Bus Stand.

An officer in TNSTC said that as many as 120 buses would be operated from the Military grounds from October 15 till a couple of days after Diwali, which falls on October 22. "In the past few years, crowd management became difficult during Diwali season. We predicted it will double this year due to the construction of a flyover near the Central Bus Stand. So, the police decided to make some alternative arrangements to regulate traffic," said the TNSTC official.

Transport corporation officials also said that as many as 200 state-run city buses will be plying from the Central Bus Stand as usual.

Police said that TNSTC would operate circular services of buses between Central Bus Stand and Military grounds for the benefit of the public.

Police have requested the public to make use of the temporary bus stand and to cooperate in reducing traffic congestion in the city. A temporary police assistance booth will be set up in Mannarpuram for the safety and security of passengers.

Source