For residents of Pallavaram, Chrompet, Tambaram and the stretches beyond, dealing with traffic in the mornings is an everyday affair.
This coupled with the fact that the highly-congested GST Road, which is the mainline that connects the neighbourhood with the rest of the city, frequently witnesses accidents, is worrying many.
To raise awareness on this and facilitate smooth and safe commuting, volunteers associated with NGOs Thozhan, Vidhaipadhu Vidhi and Ulagin Vidiyal, recently took upon themselves to clear the traffic, thereby enabling riders to drive without hassles.
“Owing to heavy inflow of crowd during weekends, we thought it would be the right time to create awareness about road safety to the public. Around 13 of us were engaged in the traffic awareness campaign, instructing commuters to wear helmets, fasten seat belts and consider other safety measures,” said Sushmitha, a techie who has been volunteering with Thozhan for the last three years.
It may be noted that the said NGO that works in the road safety front, ties up with various corporates located along the IT corridor, with its volunteers conducting campaigns every Thursday in Sholinganallur, MEPZ, DLF, Siruseri, Thoraipakkam, Tidel Park and Nungambakkam.
However, their attempts are not without hurdles. “In Sholinganallur, the signal for pedestrians to cross the road is not present, while in MEPZ the yellow lines would be missing, which creates difficulties for us. However, our aim is to advocate safety, which we do every week,” added the volunteer.
Interested people to volunteer can reach them at 99411 42188 or 98849 66613.