Chennai: More than a year after the Red Hills bus terminus was relocated — to a temporary site opposite Puzhal lake — for renovation, the unfinished project has been an inconvenience to around 20,000 passengers every day. It has aggravated traffic snarls on Grand Northern Trunk Road, one of north Chennai’s busiest roads.The temporary facility, which lacks proper bus bays, is dusty, and passengers occupy an uneven open ground. There are no washrooms and water kiosks in sight, adding to the passengers’ difficulties.In June last year, Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) announced a ₹25-crore renovation project to upgrade the bus terminus in Redhills with facilities such as a new roof, bus bays, digital passenger information boards, drinking water facilities, toilets and a pedestrian plaza.When TOI visited the terminus on Tuesday morning, there was no construction activity. Around 15 autorickshaws were parked inside the partially closed terminus, and a few people were seen smoking. The terminus operates around 202 buses on 36 routes connecting Tiruvallur, Periyapalayam, Gummidipoondi, Puzhal, Grand Line, Arumandhai and several parts of north and west Chennai. When buses leave the temporary terminus, they stop on both sides of GNT Road near the old bus terminus and a market. On the four-lane stretch at Naravarikuppam, two buses halting side by side often block an entire lane, slowing traffic to a crawl.G Shankar, who runs a pharmacy near the terminus, said, “Earlier, buses followed designated entry and exit points. Now they stop wherever they want. The authorities should complete the work and reopen the terminus soon,” he said, adding that the area has become a hub for tipplers and anti-social elements.Traffic police personnel are rarely present to regulate the traffic, residents complain. “Last week, my husband and I were involved in an accident as one of the buses hit our two-wheeler. We escaped with minor injuries,” said M Kavitha, a Red Hills resident.MTC managing director D Mohan did not respond to messages or calls.
