The Tamil Nadu government has proposed to create multi-modal transport hubs in prime places in Chennai, by developing existing bus depots, commercial utilities of which remain untapped.
The announcement for the developing the bus depots into transport hubs has been announced in the Tamil Nadu Budget 2023-24 presented in the Assembly on Monday.
Three bus depots, Vadapalani, Thiruvanmiyur and Vyasarpadi, are proposed to be developed into multi-modal transport hubs as of now. The three bus depots will be developed with an investment of ₹1,600 crore.
The State government will also develop three more bus depots: Tambaram, Tiruvottriyur and Saidapet, with an investment of ₹1,347 crore in the second phase of the project.
The State government, having made an allocation of ₹8,056 crore to the Transport Department, has planned to add new buses to the fleet, as also refurbish old buses for providing comfortable journeys for commuters. The government will procure 1,000 new buses and renovate 500 old buses for which a sum of ₹500 crore has been allotted.
The Chief Minister’s free bus travel for women scheme has received an allocation of ₹2,800 crore, and ₹1,500 crore has been allotted towards student concessions in bus fares, in the Budget.
The State government, taking into consideration the low capacity in the utilisation of railways in the multi-modal mix of the transportation system in Tamil Nadu, would be creating a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to collaborate with the Indian Railways. The SPV, to be created through TIDCO, will identify and undertake new railway projects in the State, as per the Budget.
