Pedestrians at Taramani, MEPZ, and Chromepet will soon get a big relief. The Highways Department has ordered five pairs of new escalators costing about ₹7.5 crore for foot over bridges (FOBs) there. Old escalators that had stopped working are now dismantled. The company responsible has promised to fix them soon. Officials say installing one pair will take 10 to 15 days. “Hopefully the work would be completed by the end of next month.” An official explained the earlier escalators broke down because things often got stuck and dust caused problems. The contracting company will maintain the escalators for one year. Later, the department will handle upkeep. Activist V. Santhanam from Chromepet welcomed the move, saying the old lack of escalators caused hardship for pedestrians, especially senior citizens. He added, “The department should ensure maintenance is done properly. The public should be educated on how to use the facility. A watchman should be appointed 24x7.” Mohammad Rafi, a rice shop worker in Taramani, said the FOB near his shop was not often used. He said many pedestrians run across the road instead. “There are beggars sitting on the regular steps. There is no lighting inside either. So people prefer not to take it. If elevators were installed perhaps there would be more takers,” he added. Manikandan, an autorickshaw driver from Madhavaram, said an FOB near Chennai Central Station would be helpful. He sees people running across roads there during busy times. He praised the FOB by a school in Anna Nagar as being well used by students and the public. “Some six months ago a film shooting was also done on the FOB,” he said.