After Nandanam and AG-DMS Metro stations, Koyambedu station has found a sponsor to its name and it’s viaduct wears new colours, as part of semi-naming rights initiative.
According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. (CMRL), Baashyaam Constructions has won the contract for semi-naming rights for Koyambedu station, now renamed Baashyaam Koyambedu Metro station. The viaduct at the station has been painted yellow and blue.
At present, two stations already have new names — Muthoot Nandanam station and AG-DMS Lalitha Jewellery station while Nandanam has been painted red, AGDMS walls have been given a new coat of blue.
Two more in the line
“Semi-naming rights, allowing a firm to prefix their brand to the station name has been done for increasing the revenue to manage expenditure. We started with one station sometime ago and now other stations are being gradually taken and companies see this as a different way of advertisement,” an official said.
More stations like Shenoy Nagar and Saidapet too will be renamed shortly, said R. Anandakrishnan of Mark Metro, which has won the contract for many stations.
“Billroth Hospitals and City Union Bank have got semi naming rights for Shenoy Nagar and Saidapet stations respectively. In a few weeks, the station walls of these two stations will get a fresh paint with new colours,” he said.
Talks are on to rope in more companies for stations like Teynampet and Thousand Lights.
This apart, Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. (CMRL) has been trying to open more retail outlets and restaurants on the premises of its stations to see if it can pull crowds to this system.
