Title - Revised tender rates may help Ambattur subway plan take off

The revised tender value for the proposed underpass at the Ambattur railway station, linking the northern side of the (Ambattur) station with the arterial Chennai-Tirupati High Road, has given a ray of hope for the local residents.Last September, the Southern Railway had called for tenders to construct a Limited Use Subway at Level Crossing -  6 in Ambattur with an internal dimension of 8.0 m x 3.5 m under box pushing method.However, the tender value of `4.69 crore failed to impress the bidders, as the contractors felt the value was too low for building the facility. According to K Ravi (43), an auto driver residing in Ambattur for a long time, a tiny pedestrian subway had existed about 30 years ago. “But, it was decommissioned after additional railway tracks were laid at Ambattur. Presently, only a Foot Over Bridge (FOB) is available for people to cross from one end to the other,” he added. Though the FOB facilitates the safe passage of pedestrians, motorists risk their lives while using the level crossing.School students studying in the nearby areas find it tough to cross the level crossing during peak hours.“Sometimes, people crawl under the stationary goods train at the level crossing, instead of using the FOB,” said Kalyani, a vendor.Once the subway work is completed, the residents of Kallikuppam Road, Periyarnagar, Prithvipakkam and Indian Bank colony will have easy access to the CTH road.

Joseph Samuel, president of Ambattur Zone of Chennai Corporation, said, “Now, the Railways has revised the tender value to Rs 6.89 crore for construction of Limited Use Subway. Tenders are likely to be refloated soon.” On the other hand, traders have sought speeding up of the process of constructing the Limited Use Subway.