Chennai Metro Rail Limited plans to have the final inspection of the 7.6-km stretch from Thirumangalam to Nehru Park in two months.
The final inspection, to be carried out by Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS), is likely to be done in the last week of March or the first week of April.
According to sources in Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), construction of stations is likely to be completed soon. “Signalling and electrification work has been completed already and trial runs have been on for a while. We are holding discussions with stakeholders to see if the inspection can be done even before that,” an official said. The certification of CMRS is mandatory before opening any Chennai Metro Rail stretch for public; the other stretches too were inspected and approved before they were opened.
“The plan is to open this stretch for public at least by May,” the official said. Earlier, the plan was to launch this stretch by March, but owing to some delays, it has been deferred.
Tunnelling for this stretch started way back in 2012 at Nehru Park. Nearly three years after it started, the work was completed and building of cross passages and laying of tracks started.
If this stretch is commissioned, commuters from Nehru Park can travel all the way up to the Chennai airport on Metro Rail.
