CHENNAI: Nearly 10 months after being thrown open for traffic, the 60-km Outer Ring Road is set to become a toll road from Monday. The user fee will be collected at four toll gates set up at Varatharajapuram (6 km) Kolappancheri (21.8 km), Palavedu (30.85 km) and Chinnamullaivoyal (56.70 km).
The six-lane access-controlled road has service roads on either side. It has been designed at ‘Express Highway’ standard with no U-turns (except at toll gates) and vehicles are permitted to run at 100 km. According to official sources, the road was constructed at Rs 1,081.4 crore using the PPP model and maintained on a long-term concession basis under design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis. TN Road Development Company (TNRDC), a wing of state highways is an operator of the road.
On Sunday, the government notified the toll fee. “Vehicles not having ‘FASTag’ will be charged two times the user fee,” said an official from TNRDC. Government and private buses can purchase passes for 50 trips and valid for three months.
The ORR connects Chennai - Tiruchy Highways at Vandalur with Thivottiyur - Ponneri - Panchetti road at Minjur. It passes through NH-4 new no NH 48) at Nazarathpet, NH-205 at Nemilichery and Padiyanallur at NH-5 (new no. NH 16).
Vehicles coming from via Tada, Bengaluru and Tiruchy can reach the ports in North Chennai through ORR without entering Chennai bypass road. Similarly, vehicles from Madhvaram, Red Hills, Puzhal, Thiruvottiyur and other northern parts of the city heading to Tirupati can reach Chennai - Tirupati NH through ORR. The vehicles from the Madhavaram bus terminus can enter Bengaluru bypass through Nazarathpet.
S Krishnan, a regular commuter said the service road that enters into Padiyanallur is in a bad shape. “The service road that connects ORR with Chennai - Kolkata Highway at Padiyanallur is yet to be laid properly. Cars suffer damages due to the pits in the service lane. During night hours, the stretch is unsafe.”
A TNRDC official said, “The entire stretch is fully developed. Minor works for a few hundred metres which are pending being taken up.”
