The Social Welfare Department has proposed to introduce an alert system in Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses to make travel easy for visually impaired persons. Minister for Social Welfare B. Valarmathi announced in the Assembly on Monday that Rs. 9.50 lakh had been allotted for the purpose.
The facility will be available in 75 bus routes in the city. The equipment will have a ‘sender’ and ‘receiver’ unit.
While one will be with the bus driver, the commuter will have the other. The commuter can pair up to 10 bus routes using the gadget. When the bus arrives, the unit will send out a beep, alerting the commuter.
The pilot project will be implemented in consultation with the stakeholders, said an official of the Department for the Differently Abled.
Since the technology is already available, the department would provide the equipment and train MTC drivers, the official added.“I have got into the wrong bus and found out only when the conductor issues the ticket. It takes at least six months to get used to a bus route. Chennai has the most number of blind people given the job opportunities for us. Many of us use the bus and such a system would give us confidence,” said M. Nagarajan, an assistant professor, who recollects occasions he travelled in the wrong bus.
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