In what could be a disappointment for air passengers, the opening of the multi-level car parking facility at Chennai airport has been put off by a month. The facility, which was to be opened in June, will be inaugurated by July 10.
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Officials of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) said while the construction of the parking lot has been completed, the service roads connecting the international and domestic terminals with this facility were not yet ready. The pathway from the parking lot to the terminals too needs to be laid. “We wanted to start the trial run by the end of May and begin operations in June. But now, we have scheduled to carry out the trial run by the end of next month and open the facility in July. We need to get a few approvals before starting the services here,” an official said.
With two wings — east and west — the multi-level car parking lot at Chennai airport has been constructed on 4.25 acres of land at an estimate of ₹250 crore. The main aim of building this expansive parking lot is to increase the capacity of the facility from 1,200 to 2,100 vehicles. The complex will also have recreation options such as five multiplex screens, two food courts, retail shops and children’s engagement stores mainly for transit passengers.
Though the AAI had conceived a plan for a larger entertainment space, soon after the pandemic, it decided to trim it to 2.5 lakh sq. ft. from 3.3 lakh sq. ft. The officials have worked out a new parking tariff which will be announced at the time of the inauguration of the facility.
The work on this project was started in 2019 and it has missed the deadline many times for various reasons, including the pandemic.