TN, Railways plan to turn Tambaram into metro, local & long-distance train hub

CHENNAI: Southern Railway and Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) along with the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA)are preparing for high-level discussions on an ambitious plan to convert Tambaram into a fully-integrated mobility hub, as multiple rapid-transit corridors including the proposed Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) converge on one of the states busiest suburban nodes. CUMTA special officer I Jayakumar said that a joint meeting with Southern Railway, CUMTA and the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) will be held to finalise the concept design of an integrated station at Tambaram, aligning metro, suburban rail and future high-speed regional services. It is learnt that Southern Railway has scheduled the meeting at November end at its Park Town headquarters, with officials from the Chennai division, construction units and RLDA asked to be present to examine design options and operational modalities. The state government is advancing three major projects that will all pass through Tambaram. These include extension of the Airport metro line to the Kilambakkam bus terminus near Vandalur, the Phase III metro corridor from Tambaram to Guindy via Velachery and a proposed RRTS link from Alandur to Villupuram-Puducherry via Tambaram, Jayakumar said. Tambaram is being developed by Southern Railway as a major terminal for mail, express and suburban operations, with the RLDA designing new station buildings on both the GST Road and Selaiyur sides. All the above projects need to be fully integrated with the Tambaram Railway Station for effective transport service delivery, Jayakumar said. The centre has also been pushing for multi-modal hubs under national mobility and logistics policies, heightening the urgency of interoperability between metro and railways. It is learnt that railways is examining feasibility ahead of the cross-agency discussions. The Tambaram integration effort is being viewed as a test case for Chennais broader mobility strategy, outlined in the Comprehensive Mobility Plan covering 5,904 sq km. If successful, it would mark the citys first fully-planned convergence of metro, suburban, long-distance rail and a future regional rapid system.