Thapalpetti station scrapped to save cost, says CMRL

CHENNAI: After obtaining the expert opinion the Thapalpetti station is scrapped from the Phase 2 corridor 3 of Chennai Metro Railway Limited (CMRL) plan, considering the ridership and saving cost, says CMRL before the Madras High Court.

The first division bench of the Madras High Court (MHC) comprising Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice PD Audikesavalu observed that it will not be possible for the court to sit over the decision of the experts and pass any further orders in the matter.

Petitioners Lourdu Raj and John Nicholas moved the MHC seeking to direct the Tamil Nadu government and CMRL to implement the Thapalpetti Metro Station in the project of Phase 2 Corridor 3 Chennai Metro Rail for the purple line from Madhavaram Milk Colony to Siruseri and to construct the metro station in the Thapalpetti area for the public access.

Further, to direct the respondents to stop the tunneling process under the buildings of the residents.

The only reason to drop Thapalpetti metro is to save the cost of Rs.170 crore which is unfair, said the petitioners counsel.

The respondents ought to have considered the footfall at Thapalpetti Junction, which is recorded as the highest in the past few years, the petition added. As per the original alignment, a metro station was proposed at Thapalpetti, said the petitioner.

With many commercial and residential establishments initiated, the Thapalpetti junction is the major pick up and drop spot for schools, colleges, I.T employees, and other corporate institutions, which makes this hub as the hub of Madhavaram, the counsel submitted.

The Thapalpetti metro station is dropped, the people residing in the area will have to travel long distances and they would be entirely dependent upon government transport or private cabs or autos, he added.

On the counter, Advocate General Shunmugasundaram appeared for CMRL, said that after receiving expert opinion only CMRL took a decision to remove Thapalpetti Metro Station from Phase 2 of the project.

The report considers the ridership, catchment area for the station, station location in the alignment of Corridor 3, train operation, interface risk, and the project cost saving was also considered.

After considering the same, the experts have opined that the proposed removal of the Thapalpetti station has significant operational benefits by removing localised speed restrictions and offering a reduction in overall journey time, the AG submitted. It appears that in Phase 2, six proposed stations were scrapped, he added. After the submissions, the bench disposed of the petitions.