Potholes, craters on arterial roads pose danger to road users

Potholes, big and small, on arterial roads need urgent attention from the authorities concerned.

A huge crater on Gokhale Road remaining unattended for several weeks in Madurai. | Photo Credit: G. MOORTHY

Huge craters, some hallow, some deeper, are testing the riding/driving skills of vehicle users. In fact, most of these roads were not dug up for laying underground drainage or drinking water pipelines. But, lack of proper maintenance is posing danger to the vehicle users.

The pothole on West Veli Street at the entrance of West Perumal Maistry Street often forces two-wheeler riders and and autorickshaw drivers to make sudden turns to their left or right to avoid it.

Similar potholes on the Ellis Nagar Bridge are proving hazardous for vehicles climbing it up near Periyar Bus stand. These potholes and the bigger one at Gokhale Road near Kamala II Street and few craters on West Veli Street near Melavasal remain unattended for weeks together. These craters are visible to vehicle users only when the vehicles go closer to them. Besides, they are not at all noticeable during nights.

“Two days back, a driver of a car applied sudden brake to avoid the vehicle hitting the crater. A bus that was closely following, hit the car and after some heated exchanges, those who came by car resorted to road roko for few minutes,” a traffic police official said.

The traffic police also complain about damaged manholes and irregularly fixed manholes posing threat to road users.

“In some places, the steel mesh put over huge pits by Madurai Corporation are either damaged or posed threat to the vehicles. All that we can do is put up barricades to warn road users from hitting on the damaged steel structures,” another police officer said.

One such preventive measure is seen on Hayath Khan Sahib Street near Periyar bus stand. The traffic police claim that they take up these hazardous issues to the notice of Corporation officials from time to time.

With rain all set to lash the city in the coming days, these craters, potholes which would be covered by thick sheet of rain water would only pose more danger to road users.

The Corporation and Highways officials should identify such blackspots on the important bus routes that cater to hundreds of vehicles and attend to them on a war-footing before some untoward incident takes place endangering life and limbs of road users.