Elevated Corridor from Kilambakkam to Mahindra World City

Project overview

Elevated Corridor from Kilambakkam to Mahindra World City: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has approved the construction of an 18.4-kilometre-long elevated corridor along the median of the Grand Southern Trunk Road (GST Road) between the Kilambakkam Bus Terminus and Mahindra World City near Chengalpattu in Tamil Nadu.
This six-lane elevated corridor is estimated at roughly ₹3,200 to ₹3,500 crore in cost.
The plan is to reduce chronic congestion on GST Road and create a dedicated elevated alignment for through traffic and long-distance vehicles.

Static GK fact: The GST Road is formally part of NH-45 (now renumbered as NH-32) and is one of the busiest highways in the Chennai region.

Alignment and design

The elevated structure will rise along the median of GST Road from the Kilambakkam Bus Terminus through Perungalathur and Vandalur up to the Mahindra World City junction.
No large additional land acquisition is required, since it utilises the existing road median and remains mostly within the highway corridor.
Entry and exit ramps are planned at key junctions to access the elevated corridor, while the at-grade lanes will continue to serve local traffic.

Purpose and benefits

The elevated corridor aims to:

• Alleviate severe peak-hour congestion on GST Road, especially for buses and long-haul vehicles heading southwards into Tamil Nadu.
• Improve travel time and reliability along one of the region’s major transport arteries.
• Integrate with planned expansions of the transit network, including the metro extension to Kilambakkam.
• Support growth of the southern suburbs of Chennai and strengthen connectivity to the Kilambakkam Bus Terminus, a major multimodal transport hub.

Static GK Tip: Elevated corridors reduce surface-level traffic disruption and can enhance highway throughput by segregating transit traffic from local traffic.

Challenges and considerations

Although the project has been approved, some key considerations remain:

• Synchronising with the planned metro rail alignment from the airport to Kilambakkam to avoid conflicts in design and utility shifting.
• Ensuring construction along a busy corridor does not cause major disruptions to daily traffic during execution.
• Finalising finance, tendering, and execution timelines so that benefits are realised in a timely manner.
• Managing ramp locations and integration with local roads so that elevated access does not become a bottleneck.

Status update

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been completed for the 18.4 km corridor. Tenders are expected shortly once final clearances and financing are confirmed.
Work on ancillary road widening and grade separator improvements along the Tambaram-Vandalur-Mahindra World City section has already been carried out to ease construction.

Static GK fact: The Grand Southern Trunk Road was originally part of the historic route from Chennai (Madras) to the south of India, now forming a key part of the modern National Highway network.

Implications

For competitive exam purposes, it is important to note that this project reflects India’s push for state-of-the-art elevated expressways in urbanising corridors to decongest major highways.
It also illustrates the convergence of road and metro infrastructure along the same axis – a trend likely to grow in large metros.
For Tamil Nadu, this route strengthens southern connectivity of Chennai’s metropolitan region and supports further suburban development.

Static Usthadian Current Affairs Table

Elevated Corridor from Kilambakkam to Mahindra World City: