Chennai airport passengers will get a dedicated cab pickup point just 30 metres from Terminal 1 after a new plaza and adjoining facility are inaugurated on Sunday, reducing the need to travel to the multi-level car park to board app-based taxis.
Union civil aviation minister K Ram Mohan Naidu will virtually inaugurate the facility, which was completed in December 2025 but remained unopened because of legal complications involving the airport’s previous parking contractor.
The new pickup point has two dedicated bays that can accommodate 28 cabs at a time. A third bay will be used by vehicles exiting the airport. Airport officials expect the facility to handle at least 5,000 cab trips a day once operations begin.
Cab services will be introduced in phases. Ola, Uber and Rapido vehicles will be permitted during the first phase, while the airport authorities will assess congestion before allowing other cab aggregators and black-and-yellow taxis to use the facility.
The arrangement will not replace all existing pickup locations. Cabs will continue to collect passengers from the west multi-level car park, which is closer to Terminal 4 and Terminal 2. Passengers arriving at those terminals and choosing to use the new plaza facility at Terminal 1 will be able to travel by buggy from Terminal 4 through Terminal 2 to Terminal 1.
The plaza includes seating for 150 passengers, covered roofing, drinking-water facilities and a Flight Information Display System. These facilities are intended to give passengers a designated waiting area near the terminal while vehicles move through controlled pickup bays.
The airport will also deploy 105 passenger-guidance personnel at the terminals shortly. Another 18 traffic marshals will regulate vehicle movement around the cab pickup area and manage the flow of vehicles entering and leaving the facility.
The phased opening reflects the operational challenge of adding a high-volume cab facility close to an active airport terminal. With a projected capacity of at least 5,000 trips each day, the first phase will allow the airport to observe traffic movement before expanding access to additional taxi operators.
The plaza’s location is expected to change how passengers leaving Terminal 1 connect to road-based transport. Instead of taking a detour to the multi-level car park, passengers using the permitted services will be able to board cabs closer to the terminal, subject to the availability of bays and traffic controls.
