38-km ECR stretch turns four-lane road, Chennai-Nagai travel time cut by 2hrs

CHENNAI: Motorists travelling towards Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Sirkazhi, and Nagapattinam along the East Coast Road (ECR) can look forward to smoother and faster travel with a saving of up to two hours in travel time as the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has completed the four-laning of the 38-km PuducherryPoondiyankuppam stretch, ending near Cuddalore. The works, executed at a cost of Rs 1,588 crore under Bharatmala Pariyojana Phase I, mark another milestone in the ongoing ECR widening project. The travel time between Chennai and Nagapattinam (320km) by car may come down from seven hours to six hours and by bus from nine hours to seven hours, sources said. With this, 220 km of the 300-km ThiruvanmiyurNagapattinam section of the ECR have now been widened into four lanes and made operational, significantly improving road connectivity to Tamil Nadus delta and coastal districts. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will dedicate the newly completed sections to the nation on October 13. He will also lay the foundation stone for the four-laning of the 46-km MarakkanamPuducherry stretch the final segment of the 300-km ECR widening project, according to official sources. The 220 km of completed four-lane roads include the ThiruvanmiyurMamallapuram (41 km) and PoondiyankuppamSattanathapuram (57 km) stretches, which were already opened to traffic. Civil works are presently under way on two sections covering 119 km SattanathapuramNagapattinam (56 km) and MamallapuramMarakkanam (62 km) of which 85 km have been completed. The remaining portions are expected to be finished by mid-next year, while works on the final stretch between Marakkanam and Puducherry will commence shortly, officials said. The four-laning of the ECR a long-standing demand of residents in the delta districts was originally approved in 2008 but suffered delays due to land acquisition hurdles, environmental concerns, and prolonged litigations. G Aravind Kumar, Secretary of the Nagai District Consumers Protection and Passengers Association, said, The widening of the ECR from Chennai to Nagapattinam will greatly benefit people who have long been deprived of proper road connectivity. As part of the PuducherryNagapattinam section upgrade, the NHAI has also widened the PuducherryVillupuram National Highway, improving links to the TambaramTiruchy route. These works have significantly enhanced road and bus transport to the delta region, he added. The SattanathapuramNagapattinam four-lane (56 km) highway project begins at Sattanathapuram near Sirkazhi and ends near the Nagore and Nagapattinam bypass (western side). Passing through Nagapattinam and Karaikal districts of Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry, the project is being executed at a cost of `2,899 crore. Of the total 56 km, work on 50 km has been completed so far. The final phase includes the construction of road overbridges along the TharangampadiMayiladuthurai railway line and the KaraikalPeralam section near Thirunallar railway station. Sources said a major flyover is also nearing completion, and the remaining works will be finished once the railways complete their portion. Similarly, of the 62-km MamallapuramMarakkanam stretch, 35 km have been completed, while the remaining works have been delayed due to alignment challenges over waterbodies, court cases, and land acquisition issues, sources added.