The east-coast railway line from Chennai to Puducherry just got a little closer to realisation as Southern Railway has okayed the final location survey to identify land use and cost.
Part of an ambitious plan to connect Chennai to towns along the East Coast all the way up to Kanyakumari, railway board has given the go ahead to build the line from Chennai to Cuddalore at a cost of Rs 523 crore. This, however, may go up to Rs 600 crore. The board has approved the new line by including it in the supplementary budget of September 2007. The last railway budget had allocated Rs 25 crore for initiating the project.
The railway line between Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) and East Coast Road (ECR) will connect Sholinganallur, Kovalam, Tiruporur, Mamallapuram, Kalpakkam, Kuvathur, Cheyyur, Marakanam, Kunimedu, Kuiyilappalayam, Jipmer in Puducherry, Bahour, Varakalpattu, Tirupadipuliyur and Cuddalore Fort. The line will run close to the sea at Mamallapuram.
"We have awarded a contract to carry out a final location survey. It will also identify from where the line should take off - Perungudi or Chengelpet," said Southern Railway chief administrative officer R Ramanathan.
According to initial plans, the 180-km line will take off from Perungudi MRTS station. But, there is also a view that the line should start from Chengelpet so that it can be used for freight transport. "If it starts from MRTS, we cannot operate freight trains," he added.
Southern Railway would explain to the Board about the pros and cons of starting the line from Perungudi and Chengelpet. "The line can be linked to Perungudi and also Chengelpet," he said. If it is linked to Chengelpet, the coastal line can be connected to the main railway network through the Chennai Egmore-Kanyakumari southern trunk line.
Meanwhile, a Perungudi-Cuddalore line will enable passengers to board an Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) to Mamallapuram and then switch to conventional trains to Puducherry or Cuddalore. Travellers will be able to reach Puducherry in two hours, as against the five hours via the current line through Chennai Egmore-Villupuram-Puducherry.
The survey, which is the final leg of procedures before a new line gets approval, will assess the land required and identify plots through which the line would pass. Surveys to identify passenger feasibility on the route have revealed that the line will be viable as more people travel? from Chennai to Puducherry and Cuddalore because of the recent developments along the OMR and ECR.
"After completing the final location survey, we will prepare an estimate and send it to the railway board for sanction of funds. The project may cost Rs 600 crore," said Ramanathan.
Courtesy: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Survey-soon-for-Chennai-Pondy-Cuddalore-railway-line-/articleshow/6224883.cms
