The construction of Chennai Metro Rail’s phase II project has gained momentum in the corridor 5 (Madhavaram to Sholinganallur), covering a length of 44.6 km, and track work has begun in one of its stretches.
Like the other two corridors (corridor 3 — Madhavaram to SIPCOT and corridor 4 — Light House to Poonamallee) in the 116-km phase II project, corridor 5 is a mix of both elevated and underground stretches. Though work on the underground stretch (Kolathur to Villivakkam) has been delayed, the work on the elevated stretches — Madhavaram to Koyambedu, Koyambedu to Ullagaram, and Ullagaram to Elcot – is progressing well.
According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), the track work started a few weeks ago between the proposed Metro stations at Echankadu and Vellakal, and the building of piers across corridor 5 is under way. “In corridor 5, we have to construct about 1,500 piers in total. Of them, we have finished about 150 piers between Madhavaram and Koyambedu, 142 between Koyambedu and Ullagaram and 205 between Ullagaram and Elcot. In locations where the piers have been finished, we begin laying the track, like for instance between Echankadu and Vellakal stations,” an official said.
In corridor 5, the first stretch that will be ready for operation before the end of 2026 is Madhavaram to Retteri, officials said. “The track work is likely to begin on this stretch in about six months. Subsequently, the other works, such as installation of overhead electrical equipment, will start around that time as well. Since most of the stretches in this corridor are elevated, construction has been definitely faster, and the challenges are not as bad as the ones in the underground stretch,” another official said.
Meanwhile, at present, Chennai Metro Rail has been concentrating on completing the construction between Poonamallee and Porur Junction, which will be commissioned by the end of 2025.
