The Gateway of Chennai project will begin initial work next week after the Tamil Nadu government approved 680 road improvement and civic infrastructure projects under the Chief Minister’s Integrated Urban Development Mission (CMIUDM) for 2026-27. The makeover will cover the 4.8-km stretch between Chennai Airport and the Kathipara grade separator, with greenery and lighting planned along the route.
Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner G.S. Sameeran said on October 30 that a detailed survey of the Gateway of Chennai stretch was under way by the contractor. He also said an inter-departmental meeting had been held two days earlier with the Highways Department, Airports Authority of India, Cantonment Board and Chennai Metro Rail Limited to coordinate the project.
The Gateway of Chennai beautification component has been approved at a cost of ₹131 crore. The wider package of road and other civic projects has a total value of ₹138.11 crore, according to the Tamil Nadu Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited. Of this, ₹124.29 crore will be provided through CMIUDM, while the Greater Chennai Corporation’s share will be ₹13.82 crore.
The approved package includes 595 bitumen roads, 58 concrete roads, interlocking paver block roads and the beautification of the Airport-to-Kathipara corridor. The project proposal was placed before the common project sanctioning and monitoring committee at its first CMIUDM meeting on October 13.
Several interior roads across Chennai’s zones are also included. The approved works cover 70 roads in Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, 64 in Ambattur, 58 in Madhavaram, 62 in Anna Nagar, 38 in Kodambakkam and 37 in Sholinganallur. These projects are intended to improve road surfaces in neighbourhoods beyond the city’s principal corridors.
The sanction also includes cement concrete roads in multiple parts of the city. Eleven roads in Manali, three in Tondiarpet, 12 in Royapuram, four in Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, five in Anna Nagar, six in Teynampet, five in Kodambakkam, six in Valasaravakkam, one in Adyar and four in Perungudi have been approved. One 430-metre bus-route road will also be developed as a cement concrete road.
The inter-departmental coordination for the Gateway of Chennai is significant because the airport-to-Kathipara corridor involves agencies responsible for highways, aviation land and operations, the Cantonment area and metro infrastructure. The Corporation has said that the initial work on the corridor will commence in one week, following the ongoing survey and coordination with the concerned stakeholders.
