Planning for the metro started in 2007-08 with the construction commencing in February 2009. Testing began in 2014 and the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety approved the operations in January 2015. On 29 June 2015, commercial operations started between
Alandur and
Koyambedu stations on the
green line and on 21 September 2016, operations on the green line was extended to
Chennai Airport and
Little Mount. Commercial operations commenced in the first underground section between
Thirumangalam to
Nehru Park on 14 May 2017 and extended to
Chennai central on 25 May 2018.
In May 2018, operations on the
blue line commenced between
Saidapet and
AG-DMS with the extended underground stretch from AG-DMS to
Washermanpet of blue line commencing operations on 10 February 2019 completing the phase 1 of the metro. As of 2023[update], three more lines are under construction covering a length of 116.1 kilometres (72.14 mi) in the second phase and
Chennai Mass Rapid Transit System is planned to be taken over by Chennai Metro.
History
Chennai had an established
sub network which started operating in 1931 with a single
metre gauge line from
Chennai Beach to
Tambaram and two more lines were added connecting
Chennai Central with
Arakkonam and
Gummidipoondi in 1985.[3] In 1965, the
Planning Commission set up a team to study to assess the adequacy and limitation of existing transport facilities, to determine the feasibility of different modes of transport and recommend phased programmes for development of transport facilities in major cities including Madras.[4] As a result, the first phase of
Chennai Mass Rapid Transit System, India's first elevated line between
Chennai Beach and
Thirumayilai, opened in 1995 with an extension to
Velachery in 2007.[5] In 2007, a modern metro rail system was planned for Chennai modeled after the
Delhi Metro.[6]
In 2007–08,
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was tasked with preparing a detailed project report on the implementation of metro system in Chennai.[7] Seven lines were planned by the DMRC for the Chennai metro network and the first phase was planned with two lines covering 45.1 km (28.02 mi) with 25 km (15.53 mi) being underground which was approved by
Government of India on 7 November 2007.[8] On 7 November 2007,
Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), a
SPV created by a
joint venture between Government of India and
Government of Tamil Nadu to execute the project.[7] The
Planning commission gave in-principle approval for the project on 16 April 2008.[9] The estimated base cost of phase I was ₹3,770 crore (US$470 million) of which 57% was loaned by
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).[10]
In February 2009, a ₹199 crore (US$25 million) contract for the construction of a 4.5 km (2.80 mi) long viaduct along the
Inner Ring Road and the construction started on 10 June 2009 with the
piling work for the elevated viaduct between
Koyambedu and
Ashok Nagar stretch.[11][12] In March 2009, a US$30 million contract was awarded to a consortium of five companies headed by
French company
Egis for technical consultancy on the project.[13] In August 2010, the contract for supplying rolling stock was awarded to
Alstom at a cost of US$243 million.[14][15] In December 2010, DMRC submitted a report for extending Corridor-I from Washemenpet to Wimco Nagar, a distance of 9 km (5.59 mi).[16] In January 2011, a joint venture between
Larsen and Toubro and
Alstom was awarded the contract for design and construction of track works and a depot at Koyambedu for ₹449.22 crore (US$56 million).[17][18] In June 2011, further tenders for the elevated stations of the first phase were awarded to Consolidated Construction Consortium.[19][20] The contract for supply of lifts and escalators was awarded to a joint venture of
Johnson Lifts and SJEC Corporation.[21] In February 2011, contracts were awarded for the construction of underground sections of the first phase to
Gammon India and
Mosmetrostroy.[22][23] The contract for power supply and overhead electrification was awarded to
Siemens for ₹305 crore (US$38 million) and contracts for automatic fare collection (AFC), tunnel ventilation and air conditioning were awarded to Nippon Signal,
Emirates Trading Agency and
Voltas respectively.[24][25][26]
In July 2012, the first
tunnel boring machine was launched and by October 2012, eleven machines were commissioned to bore tunnels along the underground stretch by three consortiums, namely
Afcons-Transtonnelstroy, L&T and SUCG.[27] On 6 November 2013, test run was conducted along a stretch of 1 km (0.62 mi) track.[28] On 14 February 2014, the maiden trial run for the metro was conducted between
Koyambedu and
Ashok Nagar stations.[29][30] In August 2014, the metro received the statutory speed certification clearance from the
Research Design and Standards Organisation.[31][32] In January 2015, a report was submitted to the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety for approval.[33] In April 2015, the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety inspected the rolling stock and submitted a report to the Railway Board.[34][35][36]
On 29 June 2015, commercial operations started between
Alandur and
Koyambedu stations on the
green line.[37] On 21 September 2016, commercial operations commenced between
Airport and
Little Mount.[10] On 14 May 2017, operations commenced in the first underground line between
Thirumangalam to
Nehru Park which was extended to
Chennai central on 25 May 2018.[38] In May 2018, operations on the
blue line commenced between
Saidapet and
AG-DMS.[39] On 10 February 2019, the underground stretch from AG-DMS to
Washermanpet of blue line was opened, completing 45 km (28 mi) phase 1 of the metro.[40]
Phase 1 Extension
A 9 kilometres (5.59 mi) northern extension of the blue line running from Washermanpet to
Wimco Nagar was planned with an underground section for the first 4 km (2.49 mi) until Tondiarpet after which it becomes elevated, consisting of nine stations.[41][42] Construction started in July 2016 with trial runs in December 2020 and the line opened for passenger traffic on 14 February 2021 increasing the length of the operational metro system to 54 km (33.55 mi).[43][44]
Expansion
Phase II
In July 2016, Government of Tamil Nadu was announced that Chennai Metro Phase 2 would have three lines totaling 104 km (64.62 mi) in length and have 104 stations.[45] In July 2017, the state government announced an extension in Phase II, involving an extension of Line 4 from
Lighthouse up to
Poonamallee with a new interesection with the
Madhavaram–
Sholinganallur line at
Alwarthirunagar.[46] The final proposed length was 116.1 km (72.14 mi) and it was estimated to cost ₹36,000 crore (US$4.5 billion) of which ₹4,710 crore (US$590 million) was loaned by JICA.[47][48]
Foundation stone for phase II was laid on 20 November 2020 and construction commenced on 1 June 2021.[49][50] On 14 February 2021,
Prime Minister of India announced that the government has set aside ₹63,000 crore (US$7.9 billion) for the construction of phase II and further extension.[51] In November 2022, Alstom was awarded the contract to supply metro coaches for the phase II expansion.[52]
MRTS Integration
The
Chennai Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) will be handed over to CMRL by the
Southern Railway once the expansion of MRTS is complete and the entire system will be upgraded including tracks, security, ticketing system and rolling stock.[53] On 11 May 2022,
Indian Railways granted in-principle approval for the Chennai Metro to takeover the MRTS.[54]
CMRL has also proposed a phase 1 southern extension and a
light metro.[55][56] It has also proposed the construction of new rail depots and the development of
Central Square around CMRL headquarters with commercial complexes and multi-storied buildings.[57] Phase III of Chennai Metro has also been planned as a part of the Chennai Comprehensive Mobility Plan.[58] CMRL will also aid in the development of metro rail transport in the cities of
Coimbatore,
Tiruchirapalli and
Madurai.[59]
The commercial operations of Chennai Metro started between Alandur and Koyambedu stations on the green line on 29 June 2015 with further expansions in September 2016, May 2017 and May 2018 connecting Chennai airport with Chennai central.[10] In May 2018, operations on the blue line commenced between Saidapet and AG-DMS with further expansion in February 2019 to Washermanpet completing 45 km (27.96 mi) in phase 1. A 9 kilometres (5.59 mi) northern extension of the blue line running from Washermanpet to
Wimco Nagar was opened for passenger traffic on 14 February 2021 increasing the length of the operational metro system to 54 km (33.55 mi).[61] The metro system provides inter connections with various other transportation modes in the city including the suburban railway, MRTS; main railway line at
Chennai Central,
Egmore and
Tambaram;
Chennai International Airport and
Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus.[62]
Chennai Metro runs on 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge and the lines are double-tracked.[64] The average speed of operation is 85 kilometres per hour (53 mph) and maximum speed is 120 kilometres per hour (75 mph).[65]
Rolling stock
Alstom supplies the rolling stock for Chennai Metro.[66] The first nine train sets were imported from
Brazil and the remaining were manufactured at a new facility set up near Chennai.[67][68] For Phase I, Alstom supplied 520
train-sets composed of four coaches each with each car measuring 300 metres (984 ft 3 in) in length.[69] The trains are air-conditioned with electrically operated automatic sliding doors and have a first-class compartment with a dedicated section reserved for women.[70]
The trains operate on
25 kV ACtractioncatenary system with a maximum speed of 120 kilometres per hour (75 mph).[71] The trains are connected to the grid via overhead electric cables and are equipped with regenerative braking with a capacity to recover 30–35% of the energy during braking.[72] The metro consumes an average of 70 MW of power daily and the electricity is supplied by
Tamil Nadu Electricity Board.[73] Chennai Metro also uses solar power that generates 6.4
MWp which is about 12-15% of the energy requirement.[74]
A total of 40 stations are operational along the two lines of the Phase 1 with 22 underground stations. In the underground sections, a walkway runs along the length with cross passages every 250 metres (820 ft 3 in) for the maintenance and emergency evacuation.[75] The underground stations have an average width of 200 metres (656 ft 2 in) and average depth of 20 feet (6.1 m) from the ground level.[76] The length of the stations in Phase 1 extension is 180 metres (590 ft 7 in).[77][78] The elevated stations have three levels with the concourse level at a minimum height of 5.5 metres (18 ft 1 in) above the ground level and platform level above the concourse while the underground stations have two levels with
platform screen doors.[79] The stations are air-conditioned and are equipped to be disabled and elderly friendly, with automatic fare collection system, announcement system, electronic display boards, escalators and lifts.[80] Paid parking facilities are available for two wheelers in most stations and four wheelers in select stations.[81]
Depots
Chennai Metro maintains a major depot at
Koyambedu covering an area of 26 ha (64 acres) which houses maintenance workshops, stabling lines, test tracks and a washing plant for the trains.[82][83] In 2022, an elevated depot at Wimco Nagar covering an area of 3.5 ha (8.6 acres) commenced operations with facilities for inspection, emergency repair and a washing plant.[84]
Operations
As of 2022[update], the metro operates trains from 5 AM to 11 PM with an average frequency of one train every 6 minutes in peak hours and every 12 minutes in lean hours in the blue line and one train every 12 minutes in peak hours and every 18 minutes in lean hours in the green line.[85][86] The main operational control center (OCC) is located in Koyambedu where the movement of trains and real-time CCTV footage obtained is monitored.[87]
Fare and ticketing
The minimum fare is ₹10 and the maximum fare is ₹50.[88][89]
There are six types of tickets issued by CMRL for travel in Chennai Metro.[90]
Single journey tokens, which need to be purchased each time for every journey at the ticket counter or in ticket vending machines available at all stations.
Stored value cards (SVC) are pre-paid, rechargeable, travel cards that can be purchased at any ticket counter against a refundable deposit, can be recharged up to at any ticket counter or in automated ticket vending machines at stations and offers discounted fares.
Trip cards are for applicable for travel between the same two stations and are available in varied combinations and validity with discounted fares.
Tourist cards provide the cardholders unlimited rides on the Chennai Metro system for one day.
QR Tickets for single and return journey tickets can be bought through the CMRL mobile app with QR code ticket scanners at stations.[91]
Singara Chennai card, a co-branded card launched in 2023 in association with
State Bank of India which can be used to access all major other metro and select bus transport systems in India.
Accidents and incidents
In August 2012, a construction worker was killed and six others were seriously injured due to a crane boom failure near
Pachaiyappa's College.[92] On 10 January 2013, a 22-year-old construction worker was killed and three others were injured at a metro rail site between Alandur and St Thomas Mount.[92] On 11 January 2014, a crane toppled over, killing a 20-year-old construction worker and seriously injuring one other worker at the construction site of Saidapet station.[93] On 17 June 2015, a 30-year-old man was killed on the spot and another motorcyclist injured when an iron rod fell on them at an under construction metro rail station near
Officers Training Academy at St. Thomas Mount.[94]
Criticism
Chennai Metro is the second most expensive in terms of ticket cost per kilometer in the country after
Mumbai Metro. The fares were temporarily slashed by up to ₹20 by the then
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in February 2021 with the maximum fare capped at ₹40.[95] In 2019, the
Madras High Court questioned the state government on the scientific method it adopted in constructing the tunnels without disturbing the water bodies in the city.[96]