UT Matters: Lack of bus shelters adds to woes of commuters in Puducherry

Thousands of commuters waiting at the bus stops face the ordeal of braving the summer heat

Lack of basic infrastructure facilities such as bus shelters has become a matter of concern for those ensuring road safety in the city. 

Puducherry has been witness to increasing vehicle density over the years putting pressure on the existing road space. 

The Union Territory has over 4,000 buses plying on both inter-State and intra-State routes and commuters are dependent on them in the absence of a reliable public transport system. 

However, a majority of the bus stops served by the private and government buses have no shelters. 

Thousands of commuters face the ordeal of braving the sweltering summer heat due to lack of bus shelters. The absence of bus shelters has led to chaotic situation with the risk of people being knocked down on the busy thoroughfares.

There are shelters that do not serve the purpose with their locations being several metres away from the main thoroughfares while a few shelters have no seats for waiting commuters. 

Commuters board buses in large numbers at the Indira Gandhi Square and Venkata Subba Reddiar Square on the Cuddalore Road and Villupuram Road where the available shelters are inadequate.