Chennai commuters express concern as redevelopment work at 15 railway stations drags on
Chennai commuters and social activists have expressed concerns over delays and hardships caused by ongoing railway station redevelopment and track work. Currently, the Southern Railway is undertaking the redevelopment of 15 stations in Chennai division under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme and is also constructing a fourth line from Beach to Egmore, and upgrading Egmore terminal and other passenger amenities.
As per the initial plans of the Southern Railway, the redevelopment of railway stations under various projects including ABSS was planned to be executed within eight to 12 months but normally the work gets delayed by several months. This execution of the construction work causes severe inconveniences to the commuters in the form of blocked accessways. The work also poses a risk of accidents to commuters, especially senior citizens, and causes inconvenience due to cancellations or curtailments of suburban train services.
Transport activist Dayanand Krishnan, referring to the new foot over bridge being constructed at the Tambaram railway station, complained about the contractor executing the work without putting in place safety measures. He also pointed out the delays involved in such redevelopment works.
Similar is the case of the delay in the execution of the redevelopment work in Egmore railway station and the fourth line project executed from Egmore to Beach. The redevelopment work of the Egmore railway station was initiated in 2022 but the work is moving slowly, complained several commuters.
S. Harish, a regular commuter from Avadi, the 4.5 km fourth line project was proposed to be completed within eight months but the work was completed only two years later. He also said the redevelopment work executed under ABSS project was not being completed on time.
M. Senthamil Selvan, Chief Public Relations Officer of Southern Railway, explained that projects like railway station renovations under ABSS are 'brownfield projects,' which involve remodelling existing structures, posing unique execution challenges. The Railways has to take extra precautionary steps to avoid any difficulties to commuters and at the same time continue operating the trains. He said the norm is that any brownfield project is likely to be delayed, while greenfield projects where work begins from scratch can be easily completed on time. He said directions have been issued to the contractor to barricade the area where new FOB work was being executed in Tambaram railway station to avoid any inconveniences to the commuters.
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