I am now quite familiar with majority of the bus routes in Chennai and the truth is its all messy. Even though the quality of buses have improved , it still cannot take away the irritation of travelling in a bus which takes the longest possible route to reach a destination.Take for example the evergreen 5B[T Nagar(Terminus) -> Mylapore (Tank)].The Shortest route is to go straight from T Nagar(Terminus) and then take a right to Nandanam Signal and then proceed straight to reach Mandaveli and Mylapore.What should normally be a 15 minute ride(Nandanam signal permitting) takes 45 mins to 1 hr. Our 5B goes to Saidapet -> Little Mount -> Adyar -> Mandaveli to reach Mylapore.. Imagine an outsider coming to the city and boarding a bus to Mylapore from T Nagar.All he gets travelling by 5B is some free sightseeing of Chennai. He can gawp in awe through the windows when the conductor whistles and says Raj Bhavan,Anna university,Sathya Studio etc..Surely a non chennaitte will remember that to reach mylapore , one must go via Anna University...!. I asked the logic behind 5B route while travelling in 5B to that driver himself.His argument was that this route was framed so that its easy for people in Saidapet and Adyar to reach Mylapore.!.Enna kodumai sir idhu?. The people in Saidapet can reach Mylapore by boarding 45B and people in Adyar can reach Mylapore by boarding 29C.!Why is there a need for 5B then? Bring this point to him and he says 'aamaan illa'!..
The Hero among all routes that I have travelled is 41D[Mandaveli - Avadi].Instead of boarding 41D,You can walk from Mandaveli and reach Anna Nagar earlier. True.I once boarded at Mandaveli around 8 A.M in hope that worst come worst I would be at Anna Nagar by 9.30 A.M and I ended up reaching there only by 10.30 A.M.I just could not quite understand why this bus goes to Nandanam , Ega theatre etc to reach Anna Nagar!.
There is another irritant by the name of 12C [Saligrammam -> Mylapore(Tank)]. I had an irritating experience with this bus when I was in Class X. It was getting late to school and I was crossing Teynampet Signal to catch 12B[Vadapalani ->Foreshore Estate]at SIET.(12B does not stop at Teynampet signal.It turns left and stops next to SIET College which is about 100 Meters away from the signal.) I saw a bus stuggling to get past signal.From a distance it seemed to be 12B.I boarded it and to my horror found it going straight and not turning left.(I had free school bus pass at that time and I could board any bus). I had boarded on 12C..! In a hurry , I got down at Nandanam and ran back to Teynampet to catch 12B...Had I been on the bus without getting down , I would have reached School 1 hr earlier.Felt bad that day , If only all the buses plying to Mylapore had the same bus routes , I would not have experienced that.
Speaking of 12B.I find it as one of the most straight routes in chennai even though it takes an unwanted 'pradhakshanam' around T Nagar.There has been an instance when even the driver of 12B once forgot the routes due to this 'pradakshanam' at T Nagar.Thankfully,he was guided by the passengers.
It was once in Tiruvottiyur that I got to know the real idiocy of MTC bus routes.I had to proceed to Red Hills from there and I got a shock of my life when I inquired about which Bus I had to board and from which side.People there at the Bus stop said to me that I could board any of the buses on either side !!!(opposites)[i.e I could board a bus that is coming from RIGHT TO LEFT or cross the road and board the bus that is coming from LEFT to RIGHT].Queer is it not ?Literally people were running from one end to another to catch any bus that was on that road. I don't remember the Bus Numbers though but this was one experience that I will never forget !
And not to mention 27D[Foreshore Estate -> Villivaakam].It takes 2.5 hrs to reach Villivaakam.It goes to areas in Chennai you have probably never been.Its that long a route.It goes to Pudupet and Egmore to reach Villivaakam.! I realised the best way to reach Villivaakam is to board a 29C , get down at 'Motcham' and board 27D from there.It is possible that you might catch a 27D bus that left the Foreshore Estate Terminus 2 hours before the latest one.!How pathetic.
Heard of same destination and different routes.? You must board 17 series at Kodambakkam.There is plain 17(which almost like all buses is sometimes suffixed with M to charge a Rupee extra) which reaches Nungambakkam. There is 17M/17D both reach broadway. However one among them reaches broadway via mount road (I forgot which one) and another reaches broadway by going to egmore !
Similar is the case of M21G and 45B[Both Guindy to Anna Square but completely different routes].And there are quite a few buses which ply on the same route but with different numbers. Yes. 1 cut and 21 [Both Central -> Mandaveli(same route)].This is what I like to call ''Catch '21' Situation''!.
I do agree the quality of buses have been improved but think of what all one passenger has to endure in addition to confusing routes.You have to watch the board carefully for the following. For there may be an extra 'M',Extn,Cut, and the most important of them all 'Ladies Special'(more so to avoid embarrassment). These rickety bus rides are lot of fun if you know the shortest possible route.The knowledge comes only through frequent travelling and with some bad experiences.I recently heard that google maps have come up with an app for Chennai's bus routes.! Idhu Thevaiya?.It will further confuse the innocent passengers.
Many feel its too late to modify the bus routes since the routes are now embedded into the blood cells of every MTC passenger and any further modifications will result in further confusion.I only hope the authorities simplify routes and revamp it completely in sync with the ambitious 'Metro Rail' once it starts to function.More so since the unified ticketing system for public transportation (The only good thing that Ponmudy did in 5 years) will now be implemented in Chennai. Just wish some sense prevails.
