Bids floated for new railway station in Kilambakkam

CHENNAI: A few months after the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) approved the construction of a new suburban railway station in Kilambakkam, the Southern Railway has floated bids to construct the facility, which will provide a link to the under-construction Kilambakkam bus terminus.

The new railway station will be constructed at a cost of Rs. 20 Crore on a 'deposit work' basis.

Under the deposit work system, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) will release the entire construction cost of the project and the Southern Railway will construct the facility.

It may be noted that the project was discussed in the CUMTA authority meeting in May and approval was given.

Moreover, a decision to hand over Rs 20 Crore to the railway was also made.

The new railway railway station will come up close to the new bus terminus between Vandalur and Urapakkam railway stations.

Apart from the new railway station, a project to construct a skywalk connecting the new bus stand and the new railway station was also approved in the Authority meeting.

Meanwhile, the CMDA is racing to complete the construction works of the Kilambakkam bus stand, and works to provide stormwater drains and widening of roads are underway to ensure smooth operation of the terminus once opened.

The government has already announced that the bus stand will be named after former Chief Minister and DMK leader M Karunanidhi.