67% of work completed on CMRL’s phase II stretch from Koyambedu to Chennai Trade Centre

Nearly 67 % of the work has been completed in Chennai Metro Rail’s phase II stretch between Koyambedu and Chennai Trade Centre, which is scheduled for opening in June this year.

When train services begin in this stretch, Metro Rail connectivity will expand further, as a second transit point between phase I and phase II networks will be available at Koyambedu.

In the 118.9-km phase II project, three corridors are shaping shape — Madhavaram to SIPCOT (corridor 3), Poonamallee to Light House (corridor 4), and Madhavaram to Sholinganallur (corridor 5). Initially, a section of corridor 4 from Poonamallee to Vadapalani will open within two weeks, providing the first point of interchange between phase I and phase II networks at Vadapalani.

This will be followed by a section of corridor 5 from Koyambedu to Chennai Trade Centre. Along with this stretch, stations in corridor 4 between Alapakkam and Saligramam (a part of Poonamallee-Vadapalani stretch) will be opened in June as their construction will be completed only after four months.

According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), the viaduct work between Koyambedu and Chennai Trade Centre will be completed before the end of March.

“We started the track work simultaneously in locations where the viaduct was finished. So far, out of 12 km of track to be laid between Koyambedu and Chennai Trade Centre, we have completed nearly 2 km, in locations including Mugalivakkam, Ramapuram, Chennai Trade Centre, and parts of the double-decker corridor,” an official said.

Double-decker corridor

The double-decker corridor between Alapakkam and Alwarthirunagar, when fully ready in four months, will allow commuters to interchange trains at four stations — Alapakkam, Karambakkam, Valasaravakkam, and Alwarthirunagar — between corridor 4 and corridor 5.

A few months ago, CMRL officials said they wanted to provide connectivity a little beyond Chennai Trade Centre till Alandur in June this year.

This will offer one more train interchange point between the phase I and phase II networks at Alandur.

But there is a major hitch in establishing this connectivity, sources said.

“Beyond Chennai Trade Centre, two stations — Butt Road and Alandur — have to be built. While construction of the Alandur station is under way, there are a lot of challenges in completing the Butt Road station before the June deadline. All these months, we couldn’t get traffic permission in a full-fledged way to carry out construction along Paul Wells Road. As a result, even pile work hasn’t begun at a few points in Paul Wells Road. It will be very difficult to finish the viaduct and the station at Paul Wells Road,” a source said.

CMRL officials said such problems are getting resolved now and they will expedite the work.