The widening of the Padi road overbridge and a 1.1-km stretch of Chennai’s Inner Ring Road is nearing completion, with the Rs 155-crore project expected to ease traffic congestion and improve road safety by January. The project also includes U-turn service roads beneath the bridge to connect neighbourhoods on either side of the busy corridor.
The State Highways Department has completed 94% of its work, while the Railways is widening the existing bridge on both sides. A senior Highways Department official said the remaining road works would begin after the railway portion is completed.
“We’ve completed 94% of the work. The railway work is at the substructure stage. Once it’s completed, the widened carriageway will be opened to traffic,” the official said.
The existing three-lane road overbridge and the narrow approach roads will be widened to match the Inner Ring Road’s dual five-lane configuration. The stretch between Padi junction and the bridge currently acts as a bottleneck, with the road narrowing to two lanes near Padi railway station on the Villivakkam side. Sharp curves beyond the bridge approach have also made the corridor accident-prone.
The project’s second component is a set of U-turn service roads beneath the road overbridge on the Padi and Red Hills sides. The state government sanctioned Rs 14.5 crore for these service roads in July 2025. According to Highways Department officials, the new links will allow residents of Villivakkam, Kolathur, Thathankuppam and nearby areas to travel between the two sides of the Inner Ring Road without using the congested Korattur North junction.
The service roads are also expected to help vehicles travelling to the proposed Greater Chennai Corporation amusement park at Villivakkam tank. At present, such vehicles need to travel up to the Korattur North signal to make a U-turn before returning towards the park.
The planned service roads will be between 354 metres and 424 metres long, including sections passing beneath the span. Around 75-metre portions will run under the railway structure, with the design providing more than 5.5 metres of vertical clearance beneath the railway girders.
Continuous footpaths are planned along the service roads to improve pedestrian safety. The redesigned corridor is also expected to support freight movement for industrial establishments located along the route, including Wheels India, Lucas TVS and Sundaram Clayton.
The railway component remains the key pending work before the widened carriageway can be opened. Once the railway widening is completed, the Highways Department will take up the remaining road works and proceed towards opening the upgraded stretch to traffic by January.
