The Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) is gearing to face the monsoon, which is round the corner.
Taking lessons from last year's floods, during which many depots were waterlogged, MTC has finished civil works, including laying of pipes to drain water. A senior MTC officer said the corporation had 32 depots, of which 10 were flooded last year. The floods damaged drain pipelines and due to this, the depots were inundated for some days even after the rain stopped. Among the depots where new pipelines were laid are Anna Nagar, Vadapalani, Madhavaram, Tambaram, Avadi and T Nagar.
As part of the rain preparedness, the corporation has kept 15 motor pump sets ready to bale out water from bus terminals.
Another problem identified by the MTC is the height of some depots. The Vadapalani, Vyasarpadi and Ambattur depots are below the road level.Hence, water stagnates even after light rain. At Ambattur, work on increasing the height was completed last year. In the Vadapalani and Vyasarpadi depots, work was completed recently, the officer said.
Another major challenge for the MTC was leaky bus roofs. Soon after the rain, the corporation brought in 100 workers from other state transport corporations in the state. They repaired the roofs and the work were over within a short period, said another officer.
A section of workers who came from other corporations was asked to check the wheels of buses which were plying on waterlogged roads. If grease and oil are not applied on wheels and brake linings, the wheels can get damaged. So this work was also undertaken soon after the rain. "Only because of these major works, the MTC was able to operate all services after the rain," the officer said.
This year already 300 new buses have been added to the fleet strength of the MTC, taking the total number of buses to 4,032. All these new buses have been fitted with automatic doors.
The Corporation is also augmenting its mini bus fleet strength. A hundred new mini buses will soon be added to the fleet. They are expected to be operated on new routes, the officer added.
Taking lessons from last year's floods, during which many depots were waterlogged, MTC has finished civil works, including laying of pipes to drain water. A senior MTC officer said the corporation had 32 depots, of which 10 were flooded last year. The floods damaged drain pipelines and due to this, the depots were inundated for some days even after the rain stopped. Among the depots where new pipelines were laid are Anna Nagar, Vadapalani, Madhavaram, Tambaram, Avadi and T Nagar.
As part of the rain preparedness, the corporation has kept 15 motor pump sets ready to bale out water from bus terminals.
Another problem identified by the MTC is the height of some depots. The Vadapalani, Vyasarpadi and Ambattur depots are below the road level.Hence, water stagnates even after light rain. At Ambattur, work on increasing the height was completed last year. In the Vadapalani and Vyasarpadi depots, work was completed recently, the officer said.
Another major challenge for the MTC was leaky bus roofs. Soon after the rain, the corporation brought in 100 workers from other state transport corporations in the state. They repaired the roofs and the work were over within a short period, said another officer.
A section of workers who came from other corporations was asked to check the wheels of buses which were plying on waterlogged roads. If grease and oil are not applied on wheels and brake linings, the wheels can get damaged. So this work was also undertaken soon after the rain. "Only because of these major works, the MTC was able to operate all services after the rain," the officer said.
This year already 300 new buses have been added to the fleet strength of the MTC, taking the total number of buses to 4,032. All these new buses have been fitted with automatic doors.
The Corporation is also augmenting its mini bus fleet strength. A hundred new mini buses will soon be added to the fleet. They are expected to be operated on new routes, the officer added.