Chennai Metro Phase II: 82 Per Cent Land Acquisition Complete, Size Of Metro Stations Pruned To Expedite Acquisition

The land acquisition for Chennai Phase II of the Metro Rail project is almost complete.

About 82 per cent of the required land has been acquired so far, according to Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL).

The expansion of Metro Phase II is planned with a network length of 118.9 km with 128 stations. It consists of three corridors, namely Corridor-3 from Madhavaram to SIPCOT (45.8 km), Corridor-4 from Lighthouse to Poonamalle Bypass (26.1 km), Corridor-5 from Madhavaram at Sholinganallur (47 km).

According to CMRL officials, 93 hectares of the 112.72 hectares needed for the project have been acquired.

“Out of 112.72 hectares, we have acquired nearly 93 hectares of land. In the remaining portion, including some pockets like Kaliamman Koil Street, Vadapalani and Arcot Road, we need to acquire land. In some areas, we are facing some challenges. But we are trying to finish it soon since the contractors want to take over the project site for construction,” said an official, reports The Hindu.

According to the CMRL authorities, measures were taken to make land acquisition for the Phase II project simple and swift. 

For instance, compared to the Phase I project, the size of the stations of Phase II has been reduced significantly. The size of stations was lessened from 220 meters in Phase I to 150 meters in Phase II.

Similarly, each station will only have two entry and departure ports in Phase II as opposed to four in each station in Phase I.

Currently, the Chennai Metro Rail is pushing up its efforts to open the section between Poonamallee and Light House to the public within three years.

The estimated cost of the Phase II project is‌‌ Rs 63,246 crore. Construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

The Phase-I of Chennai metro consists of a 54.1 km network with two corridors (ie, Corridor-1 from Wimco Nagar to Airport and Corridor-2 from Chennai Central to St Thomas Mount).

There are 41 stations of which 21 are underground and 20 elevated. The entire Phase-I is fully operational.