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Vol. XXXIII No. 22, March 1-15, 2024

Regular Articles

CMRL – planning in hindsight

-- by Sriram V.

Work on the second phase of the Metrorail is on in full swing. It is understood that the powers that be are very keen that the work should be completed by 2026 when the State Assembly elections are scheduled to take place. If executed satisfactorily by then, everyone can take credit – the State Government […]

MTC announces fleet expansion, includes a significant portion of e-buses

-- by Varsha V.

The Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) plans to increase its fleet strength by a hundred new buses this year, comprising 500 electric buses, 250 low-floor and 250 standard buses. This will include 100 low-floor AC e-buses which will reportedly accommodate 70 passengers and ply 27 routes including 29C (Thiruvanmiyur – Perambur), 570 (Kelambakkam-Koyambedu) and 40A (Anna […]

Short ‘N’ Snappy

– MMM

Train travails The Man from Madras Musings has been on the move in recent times. He has travelled by train, car and flight in the past few days. And of late, he is increasingly surprised by his growing dislike of train travel. Now, before you brand MMM a snob let him assure you that this […]

Our Readers Write

Beautifying the Marina I read with interest the latest MM newsletter on the above subject. While we Chennaites would like to beautify and look after the Marina Beach (claimed one of the longest in the world), I think that the overall approach to looking at it has been all wrong. The fundamental lacuna is the […]

The Chennai MRTS-Metro merger: unveiling more puzzles than solutions

-- by A Special Correspondent

The merger of the Chennai Metropolitan Rapid Transit System (MRTS) and the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has been a topic of discussion since 2018, aimed at achieving multi-modal integration for seamless transportation in the city. This pursuit of a unified transport portal, by the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA), while intriguing and promising […]

Heritage Watch

There is a lot of flowers in this issue of Madras Musings, what with the flower show that was held recently. And for the Heritage Watch column we could think of nothing more appropriate than a painting of a Madras flower by Lady Elizabeth Gwillim (1763-1807), which is our OLD. The lady in question arrived […]

Short ‘N’ Snappy

– (Wo)MMM

Wedding shenanigans The Woman from Madras Musings assumes that she is not alone in dreading the social scenes at weddings. Make no mistake, she is always thrilled to celebrate the bride and groom, especially when they’re good friends; but dealing with the crowd is another thing altogether, as (Wo)MMM was reminded last weekend. (Wo)MMM had […]

Our Readers Write

More on Pallikaranai marshland I read your latest about the Pallikaranai marshland with interest (The Pathetic state of Pallikaranai marsh, (MM, Vol. 33, No. 20, February 1st, 2024). First, Chennai is far from a ‘world-class’ city. Dravidian propaganda aside, no Indian city has ever developed anything like a civic sensibility. And since in democracies the […]

The Pathetic state of Pallikaranai marsh

-- by Sriram V.

Last fortnight saw some interesting statistics emerge from a hearing of the Southern Bench of the National Green Tribunal. Of the 1,206.59 hectares that the Pallikaranai Marsh is supposed to span, only 749 hectares or 62 per cent remain with the forest department. This edifying statistic was revealed by the Tamil Nadu Government after its […]

Passenger woes heap criticism upon KCBT; Remedial measures promised

-- by Varsha V.

It’s been barely a month since the Rs. 394-crore Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus (KCBT) at Kilambakkam became operational, but its story is already one filled with woes. KCBT is a mammoth facility with a total built-up area of 640,000 sqft and the capacity to operate more than 2,350 long distance buses, but it is still […]

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