Commuters travelling through areas like Poonamallee and Porur can heave a sigh of relief as there is no immediate plan for traffic diversion although Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. (CMRL) has started the phase II project work.
The phase II project will have three corridors of Poonamallee-Light House, Madhavaram-Shollinganallur and Madhavaram-SIPCOT, running to 118.9 km. CMRL started work on the Poonamallee-Porur stretch a few weeks ago.
The contract to build the elevated stretch on the Poonamallee-Porur line has been awarded to Hindustan Construction Company Ltd. (HCC), in a joint venture with KEC International Ltd. (KEC), and the test piling work started recently. Barricades have been placed at various points near Poonamallee bypass, Porur bypass and a few other locations as well for this work. Many commuters were apprehensive that the project work would shrink the road space, necessitating long detours in their daily commute.
CMRL officials are in talks with contractors and are in the process of finalising the traffic diversion plan, which could take some time.
“There was also a meeting with the traffic police in this regard. We have informed that we will finalise and submit it to them soon. After a discussion with them, the final plan will be given to the public before implementation. We will try to make it hassle-free for the public as far as possible. Commuters need not worry about traffic diversion for the next three months, at least,” an official said.
For now, barricades have been put up in the middle of the road and since it is a wide road between Poonamallee and Porur, it will be possible to manage traffic congestion.