Only about 14 km of phase-I of Outer Ring Road (ORR) from Vandalur to Nemilichery has been completed.
Phase-I — from Vandalur to Nemilichery — was expected to be completed by November. Work is on at a cost of Rs. 1,081.40 crore under design-build-finance-operate-transfer mode.
According to a press release, minister for highways and minor ports, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, inspected the site on Tuesday and directed officials to speed up work on the remaining portion of the 29.65-km stretch of the first phase.
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As many as eight vehicular underpasses, 18 pedestrian subways, five major bridges, three interchanges and 88 box culverts have been completed. Work on two railway overbridges is under way.
The State government has also approved phase-II of ORR, which will take off from where phase-I ends.
On completion, the two roads will form a semi-circular corridor from south of Chennai to the north.
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The ORR begins at Vandalur, about 30 km south of Chennai on NH 45, across Grand Southern Trunk Road, and circles the city connecting NH 4, NH 5 NH 205. It ends at Minjur on Tiruvottriyur-Ponneri-Panjetty Road in the north of the city.
Once the road becomes operational, thousands of heavy vehicles going to south Tamil Nadu and other States can do without entering the city.