Bangalore to Chennai Expressway is an advanced 262 kilometres long four-lane wide access control expressway. It was allocated as the National Expressway 7 on January 1, 2021. Located between the capital cities of Bangalore (Karnataka) and Chennai (Tamil Nadu), it holds a high possibility of getting expanded up to 8 lanes.
A greenfield expressway, this project is said to run from Hoskote, located in the Bangalore Metropolitan Area, to the Sriperumbudur on the outskirts of the Greater Chennai Metropolitan Area. Allowing vehicles to speed up to 120 kilometres per hour, the estimated value for this project is around INR 18,000 crores.
Table of contents
- Bangalore Chennai Expressway Overview
- Facts About Bangalore-Chennai Expressway Project
- Bangalore Chennai Expressway Estimated Cost
- Bangalore Chennai Expressway: Design
- Bangalore-Chennai Expressway Route Map
- Bangalore Chennai Expressway: Tender Status and Contracts
- Bangalore Chennai Expressway: Latest News
- Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway: Impact on Real Estate
- Proposed Toll Rates on the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway
- Spur Routes from Bangalore-Chennai Expressway
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Bangalore Chennai Expressway Overview
The already-sanctioned Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway project was first announced in 2011 and is currently being developed under the Bharatmala Parivoiana scheme. Its planned route links Hoskote in Bangalore to Sriperumbudur near Chennai in Tamil Nadu. Check out all the details of the project below.
| Particular | Information |
| Estimated Cost : | INR 17,000 crore |
| Deadline for Completion : | Not yet announced |
| Total Length of the Project : | 258 kilometres |
| Expressway’s Length for the Main Project : | 258.80 kilometres |
| Approved Inducement : | 2.05 kilometres |
| Number of Lanes : | 4 lanes that can easily be expanded to 8 lanes. |
| Owner of the Project : | National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) |
| Status : | Financial Bid Evaluation and Land Acquisition |
| Project Scheme : | Hybrid Annuity Model or HAM |
Facts About Bangalore-Chennai Expressway Project
Here are six facts about the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway that makes it a significant infrastructure for South India.
- Connecting the cities of Bengaluru and Chennai lowers the inter-city travel time from 6-7 hours to just 4 hours.
- The permitted speed limit of 120 kmph promises to decrease the distance between two cities by 80 kilometres.
- Apart from smoothening traffic and ensuring road safety, one main purpose of the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway is to promote the Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC) exclusively as a manufacturing hub.
- Expressway is expected to include five main interchanges.
- Key amenities that have been provided on the expressway consist of truck bays, traffic administration system, pedestrian, vehicular underpasses and cattle underpasses.
- In 2018, the preconstruction expenses of the expressway stood at Rs. 1,370 crores.
Bangalore Chennai Expressway Estimated Cost
Like Mumbai to Pune Expressway, Bangalore to Chennai Expressway has been assessed at an estimated INR20,000 crores. Acquiring permission for land acquisition from the state government of Karnataka, the ministry was waiting for clearance from the government of Tamil Nadu.
While a hefty portion of the cost was procured under civic construction, the rest will be set for toll collection, project administration, land acquisition, vehicles, traffic controlling system and many other activities.
The estimated total cost of land acquisition has been around INR 6million. This Bangalore to Chennai expressway project does not necessarily require equity support or government grants as it will be financially attainable considering the toll charges being 1.5times from existing rates for the National Expressway.
It is being built as per the established guidelines published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in April 2010.
Bangalore Chennai Expressway: Design
The preliminary and feasibility structure report of the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway was initially prepared through Egis, BCEOM International and SECON in 2009. The details of the project suggested that the highway will be completed with four lanes by 2029, 6 lanes by 2037 and 8 lanes by 2041.
From the very initial stage, the expressway was envisioned with an eight-lane road but later was reduced to four lanes in the mid of 2020, considering the amount of traffic the project had. The expressway is expected to feature a 21-metre wide median and other structures such as culverts, bridges, etc. All these structures will be built to widen the lanes to 8 in the future.
The details on the various features and upgrades of the expressway are given below.
| Recommended ROW: | 90 metres |
| Recommended Carriageway: | 2×7.5 metres |
| Total No. of Bridges: | 162 |
| Number of Minor Bridges: | 144 |
| Number of Medium Bridges: | 9 |
| Major Bridges: | 9 |
| Railway Crossings : | 4 |
| No. of Culverts: | 143 |
| No. of Pedestrian Underpasses: | 52 |
| No. of Vehicular Underpasses: | 41 |
| No. of Flyovers: | 17 |
Bangalore-Chennai Expressway Route Map
The 262 kilometres Bangalore-Chennai Expressway will start from Hoskote in Bangalore and end in Sriperumbudur near Chennai in Tamil Nadu, crossing the Eastern Ghats. Check out the route of the first greenfield expressway of the south below.
- Hoskote, Karnataka
- Malur, Karnataka
- V Kota, Andhra Pradesh
- Palamaner, Andhra Pradesh
- Gudiyatham, Tamil Nadu
- Arakkonam, Tamil Nadu
- Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu
To boost the economy, multiple industrial hubs have been planned to set parallel to this route. Automobile companies like Bajaj, Nissan and Mahindra planned to establish their plants here.
The National Highway Authority of India has anticipated peak traffic of about 45,000 to 60,000 travellers of car units per day along this corridor.
Bangalore and Chennai, at present, are connected with two highways, out of which one runs 335 kilometres via Ranipet, Kanchipuram, Chittoor and Kolar, and the other runs 372 kilometres via Ranipet and Krishnagiri.
Bangalore Chennai Expressway: Tender Status and Contracts
The Bangalore to Chennai Expressway has been categorised into three phases and ten sections. All these projects need to be executed parallelly. The length that has been subjected below is represented for the carriageway, each of which will include extra work for the approached roads.
Phase1
Location: Karnataka
| Length of Package and Section | Contractor or Status |
| Package 1Distance: 26.40 kms Bangalore to Malur (from starting point till 26.4 kms). | Dilip Buildcon |
| Package 2Distance: 27.10 kms Malur to Bangarpet (26.4-53.5 kms) | Dilip Buildcon |
| Package 3 Distance: 17.50 kilometres Bangarpet to Bethamangala (53.5-71 kms) | KCC Buildcon |
Phase 2
Location: Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu
| Length of Package and Section | Contractor or Status |
| Package 1Distance: 25 kms Bethamangala to Baireddipalle (71-96 kms) | Montecarlo |
| Package 2Distance: 31 kmsBaireddipalle to Bangarupalem (96-127 kms) | APCO Infratech |
| Package 3Distance: 29 kms Bangarupalem to Gudipala (127-156 kms) | Dilip Buildcon |
Phase 3
Location: Tamil Nadu
| Package (Length) and Section | Contractor or Status |
| Package 1Distance: 24 kmsGudipala to Walajahpet (156-180 kms) | Monte Carlo |
| Package2Distance: 24.5 kmsWalajapet to Arakkonam (180-204.5 kms) | KCC Buildcon |
| Package 3Distance: 25.5 kmsArakkonam to Kanchipuram (204.5-230 kms) | DP Jain Infra |
| Package 4Distance 32.1 kmsKanchipuram to Sriperumbudur (230-262.1 kms) | RCC |
Bangalore Chennai Expressway: Latest News
As per media reports, 20,000 trees will be cut in Karnataka to make space for the Bangalore-Chennai 8 lane Expressway. This segment covers about 71 kilometres of the entire length. However, environmentally, the biggest drawback in this area could be the dry region of the Kolar, where about 16,000 trees are planned to be cut, including the 9,805 horticulture trees.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari announced in November 2017 that new projects on three elevated corridors worth Rs. 1 lakh crore had been approved for Tamil Nadu, including the Rs. 20,000 crore Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway.
Out of the three, the first is the Tambaram-Chengalpattu elevated corridor worth Rs. 2,250 crores, followed by Chennai Nellore elevated corridor worth Rs. 1,000 crores and Poonamallee-Maduravoyal corridor worth Rs. 1,000 crores. International standard bus ports will also be installed in these areas.
Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway: Impact on Real Estate
Being a vital part of South India’s infrastructure, the construction of the Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway along with its completion may spike the real estate prices of both under-construction and ready-to-move-in properties.
For instance, currently, there are ten projects in the Sriperumbudur region offering plots and independent villas. Although the price of such properties in this locality is quite reasonable, they may get steeper over time because of the construction of the expressway.
Therefore, homebuyers should be cautioned to do their due diligence and be decisive when it comes to purchasing properties in this area.
Proposed Toll Rates on the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway
Given below are the proposed toll rates of the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway.
- Rs. 0.65/km for cars and lightweight transports and jeeps.
- Rs. 1.05/km for large goods transports and Minibuses
- Rs. 2.20/km for buses and trucks
- Rs. 2.40/km for 3-axle trucks
- Rs. 3.45/km for the multi-axle trucks.
- Rs. 4.20/km for oversized transport with over 7 axles
Spur Routes from Bangalore-Chennai Expressway
Spurs or spur routes are short roads that link to the main highway or expressway to improve connectivity. When it comes to the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway, a total of four spurs have been proposed for the project. Only three spurs got approved with a reduced length of about 2.050 kilometres. Let’s see what these spur routes are below.
- Spur 1: Distance- 95.63 Kilometre: 14 Kilometre of the expressway to the Dobbaspet on the NH-4.
- Spur 2: Distance- 3.58 Kilometre: 0 Kilometre to the NH-4 near Konadasapura, which is on the east side of Bengaluru.
- Spur 3: Distance- 6.47 Kilometres: 50.91 Kilometres to the Kolar Gold Fields.
- Spur 4: Distance- 7.44 Kilometres: 190.01 Kilometres to the Katpadi.
Bengaluru-Chennai Expressway- Latest News
Road Transport and Highways Union Minister, Nitin Gadkari apprised the Lok Sabha on 28th July 2022 that 6 out of 10 development packages for the Bangalore-Chennai Expressway are currently under construction. Three construction packages have been started on a 106 km stretch in Tamil Nadu. A contractor is awarded the final package and stretches for 12 km in Andhra Pradesh. The construction will begin soon. The project is anticipated to be completed by March 2024 at a cost of Rs 12,500. This signal-free Greenfield Highway stretches for 262 km and passes through the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The highway supports both bikes and cars, greatly reducing travel time. The project is the first expressway project in South India and will provide a significant boost to logistics movements as both Bangalore and Chennai are home to future logistics parks.
Read More About Govt Projects and Infrastructure
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is it safe to drive from Bangalore to Chennai?
Following the below steps properly will help you drive smooth from Bangalore to Chennai:
- Begin your journey at the correct time.
- Get a fastag to zoom through the Highway.
- Check the routes properly before starting your journey.
- Fill up the fuel.
- Pick the right stops to eat and relax.
What is the total distance between Bangalore and Chennai?
The distance from Bangalore to Chennai is 291 Kilometres.
How is the road from Bangalore to Chennai via Chittoor?
The road from Bangalore to Chennai via Chittoor is considered to be the shortest. The journey covers about 340 kilometres and can take up to nine hours of drive. However, most people prefer to take the road via Krishnagiri as the road is well-maintained from the driving perspective but is also considered a long road compared to Chittor.
How many hours are taken to travel from Bangalore to Chennai?
It takes 6 hours 27 minutes to travel from Bangalore to Chennai by road.
