CHENNAI: Motorists can now enjoy faster travel by bypassing Chennai’s heavily congested junctions – Madhya Kailash and the Cancer Institute junction at Adyar – with Chief Minister MK Stalin inaugurating the new L-shaped flyover, connecting Sardar Patel Road and Rajiv Gandhi Salai at the Adyar-Madhya Kailash intersection, on Sunday.
The two-lane, one-way flyover is expected to ease vehicular movement from Guindy towards Thiruvanmiyur, Thoraipakkam and other parts of the OMR. The seamless flow of traffic onto Rajiv Gandhi Salai will also help reduce congestion at the Cancer Institute-IIT Madras junction, where vehicles usually pile up, often stretching till Saidapet.
So far, vehicles take nearly 30 minutes to cross the Madhya Kailash junction from Little Mount, and this is expected to reduce to just five to 10 minutes. Similarly, motorists travelling from Adyar towards Guindy will soon be able to proceed without interruption, as the traffic signal at the junction would be removed. The travel time from Adyar to Saidapet/Guindy is also expected to come down by 20 minutes.
The 652m flyover, constructed at a cost of `60.7 crore, aims to ease congestion along the IIT Madras-Adyar Cancer Institute stretch, including the heavily trafficked Madhya Kailash intersection.
Sources in the State Highways Department said the existing bus stop at the Madhya Kailash junction hampers smooth vehicular movement from Rajiv Gandhi Salai towards Guindy. “The bus stop will be slightly relocated near the temple, paving the way for the free flow of traffic from Rajiv Gandhi Salai towards IIT Madras. Then, the junction will be made signal-free within 10 days,” an official said.
The official added that the right turn beneath the new flyover for vehicles travelling from Guindy to Rajiv Gandhi Salai will be closed. In addition, a new U-turn will be introduced under the flyover on Sardar Patel Road for vehicles coming from Gandhi Mandapam Road, making the entire stretch signal-free.
“The right turn from Gandhi Mandapam Road (Kotturpuram) towards Guindy will be closed. Vehicles heading towards Guindy will be diverted left to take a U-turn beneath the new flyover. Vehicles coming from Adyar or Thiruvanmiyur towards Kotturpuram will have a signal-free right turn beneath the Adyar flyover. This will make the Sardar Patel Road–Gandhi Mandapam Road intersection signal-free,” the official said.
The Sardar Patel Road witnesses vehicular snarl-ups stretching up to 1.5 km from Madhya Kailash to Saidapet during peak hours due to congestion at the IIT Madras-Cancer Institute junction. The proposed changes aim to streamline traffic circulation and decongest the three key roads –Sardar Patel Road, Gandhi Mandapam Road, and Rajiv Gandhi Salai.
According to an official note, the new flyover has been designed with a 45-metre-radius curve at the diversion point. To enhance safety, the width has been increased along the curved portion, and the design limits vehicle speed to 30 kmph.
For additional safety, the height of crash barriers on both sides of the flyover has been increased. The curved stretch has been provided with super elevation (cross slope) to ensure smooth vehicular movement.
S Krishna Kumar, a resident of Thiruvanmiyur said, “During evening peak hours, vehicles start piling up from Saidapet Court till the Madhya Kailash junction.”
He added, “The benefits of the road widening can be realised only if Sardar Patel Road from Anna University to Guindy is expanded into a six-lane stretch.”