CHENNAI: Chennaiites could save more than an hour of travel time if the elevated corridor project from Chennai Airport to Chengalpattu (Toll Plaza) along the Grand Southern Trunk Road (NH-45) is implemented.
According to a detailed feasibility study report for development of the elevated corridor, which is to be submitted to the CMDA by the second week of this month, the 36-km elevated stretch will reduce travel time from the Airport to Chengalpattu Toll (Paranur) by an hour and 10 minutes.
The report, prepared by consultant CDM Smith, states that once the 36-km elevated stretch is ready, it would just take 33 minutes for a motorist to get from Chennai Airport to Chengalpattu Toll. The entire stretch can be traversed at a speed of 65 kmph although it is designed for a speed of 80 kmph, says the report.
The average journey speed along the Grand Southern Trunk Road is 21 kmph and it requires around 102 minutes to cover the Airport-Chengalpattu Toll stretch. The report forecasts that with the elevated corridor, the average speed on the Grand Southern Trunk Road would increase by 5-10 kmph, reducing the travel time to about 80 minutes.
Work on the four-lane corridor will be done in two phases at a cost of `3,000 crore. The first phase will cover 21.7 km from Pallavaram to IT Park and the second phase will cover 13.6 km from IT Park to Chengalpattu.