Work to construct a trumpet interchange at Poonjeri connecting East Coast Road (ECR) with Chennai Peripheral Ring Road (CPRR) will commence soon. The 1.8 km long, ₹40-crore facility will allow traffic on ECR to get onto CPRR and travel comfortably to Ennore without having to go into the city.
Bala, a cab driver, said this would permit motorists travelling to and from Puducherry and other places, such as Cuddalore, to avoid the traffic in Chennai. “Once CPRR is completed, it will increase connectivity to many places. Imagine a person from Ennore being able to travel to Puducherry by road in just three-and-a-half hours instead of five. It will help save time, fuel, and lessen wear and tear of vehicles,” he said.
Sources in the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said the contractor had enough land to take up the work. “We have obtained the required no objection certificate from the Water Resources Department as the trumpet interchange runs along Perumal Eri’s embankment. It is expected to be completed by November 2024, when the first package of the first phase from Mamallapuram to Mugaiyur is to be finished,” the source said.
The ECR is being widened in phases and tenders have been called for the third package from Marakkanam to Puducherry. Land acquisition is nearing completion for the stretch from Mugaiyur to Marakkanam.
The 132 km long, six-lane wide CPRR will permit motorists to reach Chennai-Bengaluru Highway at Sriperumbudur and Chittoor-Thatchur Koot Road to reach Andhra Pradesh. Work on this road is to be carried out in five sections and physical works are being carried out between Ennore and Thatchur (section 1) and Thatchur to Punnavakkam (section 2).
Land acquisition is at an advanced stage for the Punnavakkam-Sriperumbudur stretch and Singaperumal Koil-Poonjeri stretch. In the section between Sriperumbudur and Singaperumalkoil, the work has been completed.
