The Tamil Nadu government has come out with a road map for its proposed monorail project in Chennai. The government has decided to take up the project for 54 kilometre, which will be implemented under the DBFOT (design, build, fund, operate and transfer) model.
It may be noted that Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa had shown a red flag to the metro rail project, stating that the cost of the project was high and it was also taking a lot of time. Taking this account, it has been decided to implement the monorail project, while the metro rail will not be expanded further.
According to the state transport department's policy note, which was placed by V Senthilbalaji, minister for transport, to ease the traffic congestion in Chennai Metropolitan Area, the government has decided to introduce the monorail mass rapid transit system and has also identified four corridors – Vandalur to Velacherry for a distance of 23 kilometre, Poonamallee to Kathipara Junction for 16 kilometre, Poonamallee to Vadapalani Junction for 18 kilometre and Vandalur to Puzhal of 54 kilometre.
The mono rail project will be implemented for the entire distance in a restructured form. The work will be taken up initially in the first three corridors and subsequently, the work will be taken up in the fourth corridor.
“Land acquisition is very minimal to implement this project. Mono rails of the latest technology are extremely safe, occupy less than a square metre space when columns are located on the central median, quick to execute, cause minimal disruption during construction, aesthetically pleasing, no grid power required for operation, environment-friendly and cost efficient. They have the advantage of branching and serving interior areas and are not confined to a corridor,” the note said.
