Chennai’s First Steel Bridge to Link Thoraipakkam and Neelankarai – Construction Begins in April

Chennai to get its first steel bridge across Buckingham Canal between Thoraipakkam and Neelankarai. Officials from the Highways Department said the project had been sanctioned at ₹ 35 crore and would be up and running by the end of April, with the estimated date of completion nine months later. Structurally designed with a height that allows ships to pass below it, the bridge serves as both a connecting and functional body.

The new bridge is part of the extension of Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road, which starts from GST Road. When finished, it will greatly relieve traffic because motorists can access East Coast Road (ECR) directly from GST Road. The project’s tender process is said to be in its final steps.

Residents said they were relieved by the development. Thoraipakkam resident, Kannan Balasubramanian, said that other road users currently face difficulties. “There is no good link road between OMR and ECR between Thiruvanmiyur and Sholinganallur. There are a few pedestrian bridges, but they are decades old, and heavy vehicles pass over them. If a single autorickshaw passes, there is a traffic snarl on the narrow roads,’ he said. Existing concerns over the safety of old pedestrian bridges have been further compounded as the Greater Chennai Corporation is reportedly set to demolish these very structures despite their precarious condition.

However, the bridge’s completion is contingent on essential land acquisitions. A retired Highways official explained that the project can progress with the cooperation of the Revenue and WRD. On the other end, on the Thoraipakkam side, WRD has to remove residents of 43 houses, and the Revenue Department has to compensate residents of CLRI Nagar in Neelankarai. “If these processes are done in time, the bridge would provide the much-needed relief to OMR residents,” the official added.

At present, the connected road on the OMR aspect is ready for about 800 meters, whereas about 600 meters should be completed on the ECR facet. Jobs, locals say, can take another hour, and a new bridge is expected to cut that travel time significantly.