Metro floats tenders for laying tracks in congested areas

Contractor will procure, install and commission the tracks

With the construction work on a section of the phase II project slowly progressing, Chennai Metro Rail Ltd. (CMRL) has invited firms to lay tracks in some of the congested localities in the city, including CMBT, Valasaravakkam, Adambakkam and Kilakattalai, from Shollinganallur to SIPCOT.

Under the tender for the 118.9-km project, whose cost touches ₹61,843 crore, the contractor will have to lay the track on the stretch from Madhavaram to Shollinganallur, covering areas like CMBT, Valasaravakkam, Alapakkam, Adambakkam, Vanuvampet, Puzhuthivakkam, Perumbakkam all the way till Elcot and from Shollinganallur to SIPCOT via Semmencheri and Navalur.

According to CMRL officials, the contractor will have to procure, install and commission the track on these two stretches; finalising a contractor will take at least another three or four months. “Since the deadline for the whole project is 2026, we have to start opening one section after another in phases. Hence, we are calling for tenders right away so by the time the construction of viaduct and tunnel is complete, the contractor is ready to start laying the rails,” an official said.