The Chennai Metro Phase II project expanded on Sunday with the inauguration of the Poonamallee–Vadapalani stretch, a 15-km elevated section featuring 11 stations and built at an estimated cost of around Rs 4,900 crore.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new stretch and travelled on a Metro train after the services were flagged off. The section forms part of Corridor 4 of Phase II of the Chennai Metro Rail Project, according to a PTI report carried by Deccan Chronicle.
The newly opened alignment connects Poonamallee and Vadapalani through an elevated Metro route. With 11 stations included in the stretch, the inauguration adds a substantial operating segment to Chennai’s expanding rapid-transit network and places Corridor 4 at the centre of the latest phase of service expansion.
The project cost associated with the inaugurated stretch is approximately Rs 4,900 crore. The scale of the investment reflects the capital-intensive nature of Metro construction, which requires elevated structures, stations and associated rail systems before passenger services can begin. The report did not provide a detailed breakdown of the funding structure, construction timeline or projected daily ridership for the section.
The opening is part of Phase II of the Chennai Metro Rail Project rather than an isolated station-level commissioning. Corridor 4 is one of the corridors being developed under this phase, and the Poonamallee–Vadapalani section represents a key operational addition within that larger programme. The available report does not specify whether the entire corridor has opened or identify the remaining sections yet to be commissioned.
For passengers, the immediate change is the availability of a new Metro connection along the approximately 15-km route. The 11 elevated stations are intended to serve the corridor through a high-capacity urban rail system, although the supplied information does not list station names, service frequency, fares or interchange arrangements.
The inauguration also highlights the administrative challenge of delivering large urban transport projects in stages. A Metro corridor can enter service in separate stretches, allowing completed sections to become operational while other parts of the wider project remain under construction or preparation. In this case, the newly inaugurated segment is formally linked to Corridor 4 and the broader Phase II expansion.
Prime Minister Modi’s train journey during the inauguration marked the public launch of the new services. The report did not include details on the first passenger service schedule, operating hours or the next commissioning milestone for Chennai Metro Phase II. Those details will determine how quickly commuters can begin using the new stretch as part of their regular journeys.
