Heritage Watch: A Ferry Service in the 1990s

A recent heritage walk in Kotturpuram brought forth several hidden treasures. For further details see article “From Kottur to Kotturpuram – adding to the city’s kaleidoscopic heritage”. Featured here are steps leading down to the river Adyar at the end of what was known as Ferry Road.

The name, now meaningless, commemorates a time when boat services were available on the river. And that was not so long ago. Old-time residents recall that ferries were available on the river till the 1990s. From their description it would seem that this was more a punting service for they remember that a man would use a pole to steer the boat across the river.

It was only in 1988 that Kotturpuram got a bridge to connect it with Turnbull’s Road in Nandanam. Until such a time, residents had to connect with the city by road via Guindy/Saidapet. Many preferred to use the boat service to Nandanam. By the time the bridge came up several high-profile residents of the area apparently objected to the continuing boat service because they felt that it would lead to crowding on what had by then become an exclusive residential area. And so, an eco-friendly form of transportation was given up.

Please follow and like us: