Chennai
Three corridors - Madhavaram to SIPCOT near Siruseri (45.8 km), Lighthouse to Poonamallee Bypass (26.1 km) and Madhavaram to Sholinganallur (47 km)- running a total distance of 118.9 km will provide commuters 25 interchanging stations with an option to change between two metro corridors, MRTS, suburban train services and MTC bus depots.
In the Phase -1, the metro rail which runs to 45 km has interchange stations at Central, Egmore, CMBT, High Court, Alandur, St Thomas Mount and Airport.
For the passengers, the interchange stations will either serve as complementary or feeder service from their respective origins to destinations and vice versa. “With pedestrian movements expected during peak hour, interchange stations in Phase-2 will be provided with pedestrian facilities like subways, pathways, skywalks, foot over bridges and pathways,” said a CMRL official.
In the corridor between Madhavaram and SIPCOT, there are 10 interchange stations from where the commuters can change to other modes of transports. The commuters will have an option to board MRTS or suburban trains at Perambur, Chetpet, Thirumayilai or Thiruvanmaiyur while they will get access to MTC buses at Ayanavaram, Mandaveli and Adyar bus depots. In the same corridor, the commuter will also get an option to shift between two corridors at Kilpauk, Thirumayilai and Shollinganallur.
The commuters travelling in the Lighthouse-Poonamallee corridor will be able to shift between two metro corridors at Vadapalani, Nandanam and Thirumayilai. In the corridor, a commuter heading to Tambaram from Valasaravakkam can get down at Kodambakkam and switch over to the EMU train between Beach-Tambaram section.
The corridor between Madhavaram and Sholingnallur provides commuter with a maximum option of switching to other transport modes at 11 stations. Apart from Madhavaram which serves as the starting point of two metro corridors, the commuters will be able to switch to other corridors in CMBT, Alandur and Sholingnallur. The commuter also has the option to board the Central- Tiruvallur suburban train at Villivakkam and MRTS or EMU train at St Thomas Mount. It also stops at Anna Nagar, Villivakkam and CMBT bus depots providing access to bus services.
When asked about the intermodal connectivity, Dr KP Subramanian, transportation engineering expert and retired professor of Anna University told DT Next that it is a welcome step but it also needs further integration in terms of fare and institutional - scheduling operations. He said that apart from physical integration of the different modes of transport, commuters would like to have fare integration by which they could travel buying one ticket.
“Fare integration is the objective of the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA). It should also take over the operation of all modes of public transport in terms of the scheduling operation. When somebody comes out of the metro station, immediately a bus or MRTS or suburban trains should be available to reach their last mile destination,” he said.
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