Chennai: The construction of a pedestrian subway at the railway track near the Tambaram railway station connecting East and West Tambaram is expected to be completed by this month, following which it will be opened for public use.
The project kickstarted in April 2017 and was scheduled to be completed the same year. However, the work got delayed due to various reasons such as monsoon and soil conditions.
An official said the subway is constructed using the box jacking technology. ‘In this method, concrete boxes are prepared at the construction site and pushed into place using hydraulic power,’ the official added.
The pedestrian subway is constructed near the already existing one for two-wheelers and light motor vehicles.
Estimated to cost Rs 2.8 crore, the subway was developed following several requests by residents to create safe access for pedestrians as the railway level-crossing was closed after the completion of the Rs 78-crore road overbridge in 2011.
Residents said they find it difficult to walk nearly a kilometre and then climb a foot-over-bridge on the premises of the Tambaram railway station. Pedestrians also cross the railway tracks between East and West Tambaram, risking their lives.