CMRL completes tunnelling work for 1-km stretch from Kolathur to Srinivasa Nagar

Once the entire Corridor 5 is completed, residents of Madhavaram, Villivakkam, and Retteri could access direct services to areas such as Madipakkam, Perumbakkam, and Sholinganallur. After nearly a year of drilling through weathered and hard rocks, the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has completed the tunnel linking Kolathur to Srinivasa Nagar for the upcoming 118.9-km Phase 2 project.Tunnelling work is under way for the underground sections of the Phase 2 project’s three corridors – Madhavaram to SIPCOT (Corridor 3), Poonamallee to Light House (Corridor 4), and Madhavaram to Sholinganallur (Corridor 5).The one-km Kolathur-Srinivasa Nagar stretch constitutes a tiny section of the 47-km Corridor 5.Once the entire Corridor 5 is completed in a few years, residents of areas such as Madhavaram, Retteri, Kolathur, Srinivasa Nagar, and Villivakkam could access direct train services to Madipakkam, Kilkattalai, Medavakkam, Kovilambakkam, Perumbakkam, and Sholinganallur, significantly easing mobility.According to officials of the CMRL, the tunnel boring machine, which began work at Kolathur, encountered several challenges. It had to bore through a steep curve with a radius of 230 m in varying geological conditions, and cross 70 borewells and open wells before reaching Srinivasa Nagar.Much of the tunnelling for this stretch was done below residential buildings.Multiple delaysThough it was initially estimated that the tunnelling for the stretch would be completed by July this year, there were some delays.As such, the underground section of Corridor 5, spanning 5.8 km, had been plagued by delays since the beginning. The tender was cancelled a few years ago after bidders placed exorbitant quotes.Subsequently, before the underground work could begin, some residents opposed the work, forcing the CMRL to make some changes to the construction plan, causing the preparatory work to be briefly affected. Published - November 13, 2026 11:00 pm IST