Bengaluru-Chennai expressway work to face further delay due to relocation of power transmission lines
According to a report in The New Indian Express, the project which was originally scheduled to be completed last year is inching towards a June 2025 deadline.
CHENNAI: In yet another setback, the construction of the 106-kilometer Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway stretch in Tamil Nadu is expected to be delayed further due to the process of relocating high-voltage power transmission lines.
According to a report in The New Indian Express, the project which was originally scheduled to be completed last year is inching towards a June 2025 deadline.
Officials said that the delay is mainly on a 25.5-km section between Arakkonam and Kancheepuram where 400 kV power towers managed by TANTRANSCO are causing an obstruction on 4.5 kms of the planned route. It may be noted that relocating the 102 towers would require securing new land parcels, realigning entire transmission routes and overcoming several technical challenges.
While about 80 towers have been moved as of now, the relocation of the remaining 22 towers is experiencing a delay due to legal disputes from landowners challenging the acquisition.
According to the plan, for he 262-kms four-lane access-controlled expressway will connect Hoskote in Karnataka to Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu. The expressway has been designed for a 120 kmph speed limit and the Rs 17000 crores project is expected to significantly cut travel time between Bengaluru and Chennai from seven hours to three hours. Apart from this, the expressway is expected to divert 20-25 percent of traffic away from the congested Chennai-Bengaluru bypass.
It may be recalled that the 71 kms stretch in Karnataka was completed and opened to traffic in December 2024. In Tamil Nadu, 80 km of the total 106 kms is complete while the progress in Andhra Pradesh's 85 kms section has been slow due to the hilly terrain with 68 kms being completed so far.
The Gudipala to Arakkonam section is almost 95 percent complete with only a road overbridge construction remaining. The Arakkonam to Kancheepuram section is 50 percent complete and the final segment from Kancheepuram to Sriperumbudur is 70 percent complete.
