The ambitious road widening projects in Trichy, meant to decongest the city's traffic, are turning into a colossal waste of public funds due to rampant encroachments. Despite the state highways department initiating work to widen Racecourse Road in Khajamalai from 5.5 metres to 7 metres, residents express frustration, citing past failures where newly widened roads were immediately taken over by parked vehicles and street vendors.
Crores Spent, Zero Gain: A Pattern of Failure
In the last financial year (2024-25), the Trichy Corporation allocated a staggering Rs 157.4 crore for road works, including widening and relaying. However, residents point out that spending 25-37% of the civic body's annual budget on roads has done little to ease congestion. The core issue is the lack of enforcement post-construction, allowing the newly created space to be misused, thus forcing vehicles back onto the original, narrow carriageway.
This pattern is evident across several key locations. Birds Road in Cantonment, widened two years ago to interconnect Bharathidasan and Bharathiyar Roads, is now a permanent parking lot for private buses and load carriers. Similarly, the Pudukottai Main Road in Kallukuzhi saw a Rs 4.5 crore widening project in 2019-20, where a 600-metre stretch was expanded from 15 to 20 metres. Today, five metres of that costly space is occupied by street vendors.
Residential Areas Bear the Brunt
The problem extends beyond major thoroughfares into residential neighborhoods. On VOC Street in Thennur Anna Nagar, a recently inaugurated roadside park built for Rs 30,000 on vacant land next to a widened road remains invisible to the public. The access is blocked by cars permanently parked on the road and covered with car covers. Ward 28 councillor Faiz Ahmed acknowledged the issue, stating a solution would be sought with police help, as people from nearby areas use the road for parking.
In areas like Cantonment and KK Nagar, the situation repeats. Benwells Road and part of Alexandria Road junction, freshly relaid by the corporation, saw cars parked on them within hours of work completion, compromising the road's quality. Residents blame nearby mechanic shops and showrooms for using residential roads like Thillai Nagar 80 Feet Road and Wireless Road as their private parking lots.
Lack of Coordination is the Root Cause
Road safety activist C Balasubramanian from Karumandapam pinpoints the fundamental flaw: "There is no coordination between the corporation, highways, and city police. Authorities fail to notice lapses in daily commute." This siloed approach results in expensive infrastructure being rendered futile immediately after construction.
A Trichy Corporation official mentioned some corrective steps, such as planning to relocate electricity poles obstructing carriageways on roads like Rajaram Road by paying Tangedco. The official also assured that the matter of permanent on-street parking would be taken up with the police. However, for weary Trichy residents, these promises ring hollow against the daily reality of congested roads despite crores of investment.
