Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) takes strides in the Phase-2 Project with the recent launch of the Tunnel Boring Machine (Pelican – S1075B) at Panagal Park Station, fueling the expansion of the city’s metro rail network.
Project Overview:
Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has commenced the expansion of the Chennai city’s metro rail network as part of Phase-2 after the successful completion of the Phase-1 and Phase-1 Extension Corridors in stages since June 2015 and the growing ridership in Corridors 1 & 2. Now, CMRL has ventured into an extensive infrastructure development in the city comprising 3 more corridors of metro rail for a total length of 116.1 km with 119 metro stations.
Corridor-4 of Phase-2:
- Chennai Metro Rail Phase-2, Corridor-4 is an east-west alignment for a length of 26.1 km connecting the beachfront from Light House station to Poonamallee Depot has 9 underground stations and 18 elevated stations.
- Corridor-4 underground part stretching over 10 km, originating from the Lighthouse, and passing through Chennai’s oldest areas like Mylapore, Kutchery Road to new and upmarket areas like Alwarpet, Bharatidasan, Boat Club, Panagal Park & Kodambakkam.
A total of four TBMs will be utilised in Corridor-4. In this, the underground projects namely C4-UG01 (Light House to Bharathidasan Road) & C4-UG02 (Bharathidasan Road to Kodambakkam Powerhouse Ramp) was bagged by ITD Cementation India Limited to construct both Metro Stations and its tunnels.
Two TBM’s namely Flamingo and Eagle have already been launched from Light House Station towards Thirumayilai Metro Station and two TBM’s namely Peacock and Pelican are being launched from Panagal Park station towards KodambakkamPowerhouse Ramp.
TBM Pelican:
- This TBM Pelican is launched in the up line of this Corridor- 4 and will mine at a maximum depth of 18.5m from ground level and it will complete this stretch by end of December 2024.
- In this stretch, this TBM will pass through North Usman Road flyover and Kodambakkam flyover.
- The retrieved TBM will then start tunnelling from Panagal Park towards Boat Club Station.
- TBM peacock will commence its journey on April 1, 2024, from Panagal Park to Kodambakkam Powerhouse Ramp retrieving shaft in Downline.
Launch Event:
Mr. T. Archunan, Director Projects, CMRL, ceremoniously launched TBM Pelican on January 31, 2024, marking a significant milestone. The event was attended by senior officials from CMRL, General Consultants, M/s AEON Consortium, and ITD Cementation.
As Chennai Metro propels into the future, these strategic developments in Phase-2 underline the city’s commitment to efficient and extensive public transportation infrastructure.
Source: CMRL- Press Release | Images Credit: CMRL
