INDIA: Three consortia have submitted bids to build the first section of Chennai metro’s 119 km second phase, which would add a further three lines and 128 stations.
Phase 2 comprises the north-south Line 3 from Madhavaram to St Joseph’s College in Kamaraj Nagar, the 26 km east-west Line 4 from Poonamallee to Lighthouse, and orbital Line 5 from Madhavaram to Sholinganallur around the western side of the conurbation.
On October 20, Chennai Metro Rail Ltd opened the technical bids for construction of the 7·9 km central section of Line 4 from Power House in Kodambakkam to Porur Junction, together with nine stations. Of these, the four stations at Power House, Vadapalani, Saligramam and Avichi School would be served by Line 4 alone. The other five at Alwarthirunagar, Valsaravakkam, Karambakkam, Alapakkam and Porur Junction would also be served by Line 5, as the two routes are intended to run parallel on a double-deck alignment.
Bids were submitted by a joint venture of Hindustan Construction Co and KEC International, Larsen & Toubro, and Sweden’s NCC. Financial offers from the three consortia are due to be opened at a later date.
Meanwhile, CMRL has resumed test running on the final 9 km section of its 45 km two-line Phase 1 network, which has been under construction since 2016. This will see the Blue Line extended north from Washermenpet to Wimco Nagar, adding another nine stations and a new depot at the northern terminus.
The final section had originally been due to open in June but was delayed by the coronavirus lockdown. It is now expected to be ready for opening in January, completing the 32 km Line 1 from Wimco Nagar in the north to Airport in the southwest. The last of 10 additional trainsets assembled at Alstom’s SriCity plant to work the extended line was delivered in March.
