7. Highways and Transport

Roads and Bridges

Road development plays a major role in the economic development of a nation. A good transportation system combined with better road connectivity is essential in achieving the economic and industrial goals set forth by the Government. Highways Department undertakes infrastructure developmental works like widening / strengthening/ improvements of roads, formation of bypasses, construction of bridges, ROB/RUBs, Grade separators, culverts etc.

The total length of roads under the control of this department is 62,017 Km as on 1.4.2012. Out of the total length of 4974 km of National Highways, 1500 km length is maintained by National Highways wing and 3474 km is maintained by NHAI, State Highways 10764 km, Major District Roads 11247 km, Other District Roads 35032 km. A new " State Highways Authority" is proposed to be established on the lines of the National Highways Authority of and major State Highways will be entrusted to it so as to give more focused attention to their formation, quality maintenance and management, as per global standards.

Comprehensive Road Infrastructure Development Programme (CRIDP)

Comprehensive Road Infrastructure Development Programme (CRIDP) is a flagship scheme of the Government and aims to improve and widen roads in a massive scale with huge outlay. Under this scheme, widening of all intermediate lane State Highways (SH) to double lane, widening of single lane Major District Roads(MDR) progressively to intermediate lane and widening of Other District Roads(ODR) with heavy traffic intensity from single lane to intermediate lane are being taken up. Improvements/Strengthening of the roads, rebuilding of damaged stretches, Formation of bypasses, raising of dips, construction of cement concrete pavement, construction of bridges/ culverts in lieu of existing old damaged structures, protective works like construction of retaining wall, construction of drains are under taken in this scheme. During the year 2012-13, it is proposed to complete 1150 km widening/strengthening of roads and 100 culverts/ bridges of State Highways. For the year 2013-14, it is proposed to undertake widening/ strengthening of roads of 1800 km length and construction of 175 bridges/culverts. Under the Major District Roads, it is proposed to complete widening/ improvements of 1400 km length of roads and build 45 bridges/ culverts during the year 2012-13. For the year 2013-14, it is proposed to take up widening/ strengthening of roads of 1500 kms length and construction of 150 bridges/culverts. Works relating to the widening/ improvements to 321 km of Other District Roads and construction of 52 bridges/ culverts were taken up. New works for widening/ improvements to 763 km roads, 36 works of construction of culverts/bridges, 22 works of protective works have been sanctioned during 2012-13. Under ODR, it is proposed to take up widening/ strengthening of roads of 1300 km length and construction of 125 bridges/culverts and widening/ strengthening of roads of length 750 km and construction of 60 bridges/culverts under CRIDP-SCP for the year 2013-14.

Chennai Metropolitan Development Plan (CMDP)

To improve the road infrastructure in and around Chennai, construction of grade separators and bridges, construction of centre medians and footpaths, improvement of road works, etc., have been taken up. Under this scheme, 5 bridge works and 2 grade separators have been taken up during the year 2012-13. For the year 2013-14, it is proposed to take up 2 road works, three grade separators and one river bridge.

Formation of Byepasses

Bypasses help avoiding congestion of traffic inside towns and cities due to overcrowding of vehicles, save fuel, avoid delay for through traffic etc. In view of the necessity to form bypasses, land acquisition process is initiated in the first phase and formation of bypasses taken up in the second phase. Further to facilitate hassle free traffic in all corporations, development of Radial and Ring (orbital) roads (Hub, Spoke and Ring Model) are being planned in a phased manner. Preparation of Detailed Project Report for Madurai, , Tirchirapalli, Salem, Triuppur, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, and Vellore is being undertaken in traffic study work. Work on four laning the East Coast Road from Chennai up to Mamallapuram will commence during 2013-2014.

NABARD Assisted schemes

In major towns, land acquisition process alone is carried out for construction of 12 byepasses. It is proposed to take up Strengthening /improvements / rebuilding of 192 road works under various schemes assisted by NABARD.

Rajiv Gandhi Salai (IT Expressway): (Phase-I & II)

Under Phase-I the Rajiv Gandhi Salai (IT Corridor) was developed to six lane road at international standards from Madhya Kailash, Chennai to Siruseri for a distance of 20.10 Km and the Link Road connecting Sholinganallur and East Coast Road at KudimiyanThoppu for a distance of 2.15 km to a four lane road. This road is maintained by M/s IT Expressway Ltd., the SPV of Tamil Nadu Road Development Company Ltd. In the second phase, the Government has proposed to construct six lane road for a distance of 25 Kms from Siruseri to Mamallapuram connecting East Coast Road, under viable financial format under Public Private Partnership basis.

Chennai Outer Ring Road

Chennai Outer Ring Road project at a length of 62 km connecting Vandalur in NH-45 with Minjur in Thiruvotriyur Ponneri Pancheti (TPP) is being implemented on Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) on Semi Annual Annuity basis. Tamil Nadu Road Development Company Limited (TNRDC), Chennai has been appointed as “Managing Associate” for this project. In Phase I of the Chennai Outer Ring Road project, road works for the length of 29.65 kms from Vandalur in NH 45 to Nemilicherry NH, at a cost of Rs.1081.40 crore is in progress. Phase II of this project connects Nemillichery in NH-205 to Minjur in Thiruvotriyur Ponneri Pancheti (TPP) Road is taken up at a cost of Rs.1075 crore on DBFOT basis. Land acquisition from Nemillichery in NH-205 to Minjur in Thiruvotriyur Ponneri Pancheti (SH 56) (TPP) via Padayanallur in NH-5 road to a length of 32 km is in progress.

Tamil Nadu Road Sector Project

The Tamil Nadu Road Sector Project (TNRSP) is being implemented with the World Bank Loan Assistance, initially to the extent of Rs.1670 crore at the total estimated cost of Rs.2160 crore, which was subsequently revised to Rs.2442 crore with World Bank assistance to the extent of Rs.1906 crore.

Out of 724 km roads 723 km of road works were completed and the balance 1 km length of Kumbakonam bypass and ROBs in Kumbakonam and Ramanathapuram bypass is under execution by Railways as deposit work and reconstruction of Tsunami affected bridge between Keezhamanakudi and Melamanakudi villages in Kanyakumari District will be completed by end of the current financial year 2012-13.

For maintaining the roads for a term of 5 years continuously under single contract, the World Bank has approved Thoppur--Bhavani-Erode Road (SH 20), -Mecheri Road (MDR), Omalur-Sangagiri-Tiruchengode-Paramathy Road (SH 86) and Salem-Arur-Tirupathur-Vaniyambadi road (SH 18) for a total length of 296 km. Under Performance Based Maintenance contract (PBMC), being upgraded by TNRSP are considered for maintenance through with State Assistance after completion of upgradation. For the year 2013-14, it is proposed to undertake road works for a length of 202 km under PBMC. The Performance Based Maintenance Contract (PBMC) model, being tried on pilot basis in Pollachi sub division, will be upscaled to other areas. With the World Bank Assistance. TNRSP Phase II project is proposed to be undertaken by the State covering a road length of 1678 kms during 2013-14. The project will improve and develop road links having very high intensity traffic.

Revamped Central Road Fund Scheme

Under this Scheme, 11 road works for a length of 126.73 Km and 2 bridge works have been taken up as spill over works at a cost of Rs.86.89 crore. Out of this, 6 road works to a length of 82.42 Km have been completed upto October 2012 and the remaining are under progress. Plan Outlay for 2013-14

An outlay of Rs.2529.03 crore is proposed for the Roads and Bridges Sector for the Annual Plan 2013-14.

Surface Transport Services

Road transport has a dominant role in India’s transportation sector. It carries 90% of passenger traffic and 50% of freight traffic in India. It is one of the key infrastructural input for sustained economic development and also plays a significant role in promoting national integration. The transport system also plays an important role in promoting the development of the backward regions and integrating them with the mainstream economy by opening them to trade and investment.

Tamil Nadu Motor Vehicles Maintenance Department (MVMD) is a service oriented department undertaking maintenance/ repairs of all Government vehicles spread all over the State. It is responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of about 10,000 vehicles. There are 20 Government automobile workshops in the district headquarters throughout the State and one Service Station at Secretariat for this purpose.

The State Transport Undertakings are operating 21,207 buses as on 31.03.2012. Out of these, mofussil buses are 8174 [38.5 percent], Town and Metro buses 9909 [46.7 percent], Ghat buses 519 [2.4 percent], Express buses 905 [4.3 percent] and spare buses 1700 [8 percent]. The STUs cover more than 88.4 lakh kilometre catering to 2.10 crore passengers per day. For the welfare of the women passengers, in peak hours buses are operated exclusively for ladies/ children. The State Transport Undertakings have been consistently bagging national awards in achieving the best physical parameters such as fleet utilization, kilometer efficiency, occupancy ratio and fuel efficiency. As on 30.06.2011, the State Transport undertakings have a fleet strength of 21169 buses.

Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) has been activated to integrate all available public transport modes which include buses, Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS), sub-urban railway, mono rail and metro rail. It is expected to facilitate a common ticketing system for all modes of public transport, thus enabling seamless transportation across all modes. During 2013-2014, a study on the Multi Modal Transport Integration in Chennai City will be taken up. The Monorail project is proposed to be implemented through Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) model in two phases. The first phase will cover three routes covering 57 kms viz., Vandalur-Velachery, Poonammalle-Kathipara and Poonammalle-Vadapalani. The second phase will cover 54 kms from Vandalur to Puzlal via Madhavaram.

Plan Outlay for 2013-14

An outlay of Rs.793.50 crore is proposed for the Surface Transport Sector for the Annual Plan 2013-14.