A multi-level car park with the capacity to accommodate nearly 2,000 vehicles will come up at Chennai airport. Work on the project is expected to begin in a few weeks.
The facility will come up on one million square feet of space. Besides, a 2.5 lakh square feet mall has also been planned at the car park.
Olympia Group has been given the project by the Airports Authority of India (AAI), while Larsen & Toubro (L&T) will carry out the construction.
According to L&T officials, the car park will be built on both ends of the Chennai Airport Metro Rail station. The structures will be 27 metres tall and have six levels.
AAI officials said that it would take at least 18 months to complete the project. “Since the construction is going to start soon, passengers coming and leaving the airport are likely to face some inconvenience. But when it is finished, passengers will not face any parking issues. To generate revenue, we have planned to build a mall,” one of the officials added.
This project is estimated to cost ₹250 crore and when it is operational, the facility will take care of the demand till 2030. The existing parking lot at Chennai airport can house 1,200 cars.
The proposal to construct a multi-level car park was mooted back in 2010 but was not carried out for various reasons. AAI decided to take it up again as part of the airport’s phase II modernisation project.
Chennai airport handles about 18 million passengers a year and, according to AAI estimates, this will increase to 30 million in the near future.
The mall was added because, according to a study done by real estate services firm Jones Lang Lasalle, it will provide people living in areas like Adambakkam, Alandur, Nanganallur, Tirusulam, Pallavaram and Puzhuthivakkam with access to a shopping destination.
L&T will also construct the new airport terminals as part of the modernisation project. The old Kamaraj Domestic Terminal has been demolished.Work will start in a few weeks and the new terminals are expected to be be ready in three years’ time.
