The remaining tasks involve constructing the final arm of the bridge connecting to the Tambaram Eastern Bypass, as well as laying the service road and a drain-cum-footpath.
The State Highways Department is set to resume the remaining construction of the Perungalathur road overbridge (RoB), which will link the Tambaram Eastern Bypass with GST Road, helping to alleviate traffic congestion in Tambaram. This follows the approval from the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) for the diversion of land from the Vandalur reserve forest.
The outstanding work includes building the final arm of the bridge connecting to the Tambaram Eastern Bypass, laying a service road, constructing a drain-cum-footpath, and implementing road safety measures across the entire RoB.
Construction began in 2019 to replace level crossing-32 between Tambaram and Vandalur Railway Station and to build an elliptical-shaped rotary flyover on GST Road with six arms. The contract was awarded to an Erode-based company for Rs 155 crore in October 2019. So far, work worth Rs 111.9 crore—about 72% of the contract value—has been completed, but the contract was foreclosed in July this year due to delays in land acquisition.
The department has completed the Chengalpattu-Chennai arm, the Srinivasa Raghavan Nagar arm on the Perungalathur side, and the Chennai-Chengalpattu arm, all of which are now open to traffic. However, full completion has been stalled due to the delay in obtaining approval for the use of 0.9547 hectares of forest land and relocating a substation on the eastern side.
An official indicated that with the recent approval for land diversion, efforts are being intensified to complete the final leg of the RoB, which will significantly improve traffic flow on GST Road at Perungalathur and Tambaram. “Now that we have received the necessary approval, the works will be completed soon,” the official stated.