Trichy Roads Crumble Despite ₹157 Crore Infrastructure Spend Last Year
Despite allocating ₹157.4 crore—nearly 37% of its total expenditure in the previous fiscal year—towards road development, the Trichy Municipal Corporation is facing growing public anger as arterial roads remain potholed, uneven, and dangerously cratered. Local residents and road safety advocates claim that unscientific patchwork and substandard repair practices following utility installations have rendered roads across major commercial zones virtually impassable, raising questions about transparency and prioritisation in civic spending.
Many roads across Thillai Nagar, Cantonment, Salai Road, and Puthur, once crucial urban links, are now marked by potholes every few hundred metres. These damages have been worsened by unprofessional restoration after pipe bursts and sewer repairs. Patchwork completed hastily after underground drainage and water line maintenance has failed to match the original surface quality, particularly in stretches frequented by two-wheelers. Road safety groups point to an alarming increase in skidding incidents and daily congestion, especially during peak hours. The issue is exacerbated by the rushed laying of pipelines without allowing time for soil settlement. Once underground utility work concludes, roads are often relaid or patched before the ground has stabilised, leading to early surface damage. Water seepage and renewed pipe failures force civic crews to repeatedly dig up the same stretches, which are then filled with minimal effort. The result is a labyrinth of poorly levelled surfaces that compromise not just mobility but also air quality due to increased vehicular idling in traffic.
Although certain roads have recently been upgraded using funds from the Tamil Nadu Urban Road Infrastructure Fund (TURIF) and Ambient Air Quality improvement schemes, these stretches now fall under a three-to-five-year embargo before they qualify for additional funding. As telecom providers begin digging fresh trenches, residents are calling for comprehensive relaying rather than temporary fixes that raise road height unevenly, worsening drainage and accessibility in low-lying residential pockets. The road deterioration has also had cascading effects on the city’s economic activity and emergency services. Delivery vehicles and ambulances navigating damaged stretches report delays that can stretch critical response times by several minutes. Shopkeepers in commercial zones like Thennur and Salai Road have noted a decline in footfall, with customers avoiding areas known for poor road conditions. Urban planners argue that the lack of coordination between utility agencies and road contractors is symptomatic of deeper governance gaps.
Experts recommend establishing a centralised monitoring body to ensure that no road is relaid without pre-clearance from all departments involved in underground infrastructure, and that all repairs are audited for quality and durability before being signed off. As the city prepares for the upcoming monsoon, officials have promised surveys and a coordinated approach to repair critical stretches using municipal revenue. However, without a shift towards sustainable road-laying practices, integrated utility planning, and robust quality control, Trichy’s civic infrastructure risks becoming a cycle of inefficient spending. Building climate-resilient, commuter-safe roads must now be central to urban renewal efforts that value long-term function over short-term fixes.
