November 11, 2020: Work on the first phase of the Chennai Peripheral Road (CPR) for which a loan agreement worth Rs 2,470 crore was signed between India and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to help improve connectivity of container movement from southern industrial districts to Ennore and Kattupuli is likely to start by the first or second quarter of next year, according to an official source.
The five-phase 133 km Peripheral Road for which land is being acquired will address the rapidly increasing road traffic demand in the Chennai Metropolitan Area. The project is expected to improve the connectivity in and around Chennai by formulating the radial-ring road network in collaboration with other ring roads such as Inner Ring Road, the Chennai Bypass and Outer Ring Road to provide alternative routes for traffic as well as improve the road network.
It will also provide direct access to Ennore Port and Kattupalli Port from industrial clusters located in suburban areas of Chennai Metropolitan Area to accelerate industrial and economic growth, the official source said.
It is learnt that currently land acquisition is in the final stages and once the project starts next year, it is likely to be completed by 2024. Official sources said that the 25 km phase-1 from Northern Port Access Road to Egmore will be implemented with financial assistance from JICA.
The Detailed Project Report for that section has been scrutinised and finalised by JICA. The 26 km Phase-II from Thatchur on National Highway 16 to the start of Thiruvallur Bypass and 30 km Phase-III from the start of Thiruvallur Bypass to Sriperumbudur on National Highway 48 are proposed to be implemented with financial assistance from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
It is learnt that under phase-II, a new alignment is being proposed to avoid impacting local residents. It starts from the Velliyur village and ends at Ikkadu Kandigai village. As per the original alignment plan formulated by the state highways department, the settlement areas namely Vengal, Vadamadurai, Periyapalayam and Puduvoyal will be significantly impacted.
As an alternative, a new alignment plan was formulated by avoiding the settlement areas. Being a greenfield alignment, it has been designed to traverse behind the settlement areas in Velliyur and Tamaripakkam. The Vengal bypass road, as well as Vadamadurai bypass road, as per the original plan are no longer necessary.
Even the original alignment plan for phase III has undergone changes to minimise the social impact. As per the original plan, Phase-III was to follow nearly 80 percent of the State Highway 57 (existing State Highway). Due to this, the settlement areas, namely Thiruvallur, Kakkalur, Manavalangar and Melnallathur industrial area, would have been impacted. As an alternative, a new alignment plan was formulated by avoiding them. Out of 30.1 km, the proposed alternate alignment will have 20 km greenfield road, which is designed to traverse behind the settlement areas.
It is also proposed to have a Thiruvallur bypass (to avoid Thiruvallur town) and two realignment sections at Thodukadu village and Sriperumbudur town to avoid major social impacts (damage to the structures). The proposed alignment also saves nearly 8,500 avenue trees (located along the State Highway 114) and significant numbers of roadside water bodies. As per the economic analysis, the proposed new alignment plan is more economically viable than the original alignment plan.
Fact file:
Northern Port Access Road–Ennore port to Thatchur on NH 16: 25.312 km
Thatchur on NH 16 to Start of Thiruvallur Bypass: 26.103 km
Start of Thiruvallur Bypass to Sriperumbudur on NH 48: 30.104 km
Sriperumbudur on NH 48 to Singaperumal Koil on NH 32: 23.805 km
Singaperumal Koil on NH 32 to Mahabalipuram: 27.471 km
Total: 132.7812 km
Source: New Indian Express
