The Times of India                08.01.2014 

Speed breakers on Chennai roads that fail to meet standards to be replaced

CHENNAI: The Chennai Corporation plans to come up with three models of speed breakers for roads of different traffic intensities.

Speed breakers across the city that fail to meet the Indian Road Congress's standards are being identified and will be replaced with the new ones.

The three models of speed breakers designed according to Indian Road Congress standards will be built for vehicles to drive over it with a speed limit of 10 kmph, 15 kmph and 25 kmph. "We will decide on the type of speed breaker to install based on the amount of traffic the road sees," said a senior corporation official. The speed breakers would be installed close to schools, hospitals and at accident prone road junctions, said a statement from the civic body.

An expert committee has also been formed in every zone to identify all the illegal speed breakers on interior roads across the city.

"Speed breakers which have not been laid by us or the traffic police will be removed. Rubber speed breakers and badly built ones will be removed and replaced with new standard ones," said a senior corporation source.

A separate committee, consisting of the superintendent engineer, traffic inspector, an NGO and a few others will study the speed breakers on bus routes.

The Hindu              07.01.2014

Extended areas of city to get new grid system of roads

Chennai Corporation is set to issue the work order for developing a grid system of roads in the extended areas of the city that are lacking good road facilities.

Under grid-III of the State-funded Integrated Grid Development programme, roads are proposed to be laid in Tiruvottiyur, Manali, Madhavaram, Ambattur, Valasaravakkam, Alandur and Perungudi at a total cost of around Rs. 400 crore. In these road works, which are part of the mega city development plan, other civic facilities including stormwater drain, cable duct, stainless steel name boards and street lights, too will be integrated.

A senior official of the civic body said that already works under grid-I covering Tiruvottiyur, Manali, Madhavaram, Ambattur, Valasaravakkam, Alandur, Perungudi and Sholinganallur had been completed at a cost of Rs. 380 crore, and works under grid-II costing Rs. 350 crore had been executed in all 15 zones. He added that Sholinganallur, part of the Corporation, had been excluded from grid-III of the programme as Chennai Metro Water Supply and the sewerage board was yet to complete the water pipeline work there.

The civic official pointed out that normally road work would involve relaying damaged roads, but this programme involved a comprehensive system including provision for cable ducts on one side, cable cross ducts and paved footpaths.

The advantage of this system was that there would not be any need for road cuts due to the provision for cable cross ducts, and the roads would last longer, he added.