Chennai Metro Rail Overcomes Challenges in Underground Station Construction Amidst City Disruption
Posted on: 16/Aug/2023 9:23:51 AM
Despite months of disruption caused by Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) construction, the city`s inhabitants are increasingly embracing the Metro services. However, CMRL officials are grappling with daily challenges that arise from the ongoing work. Delays in tender awards have spurred efforts to expedite construction, especially in underground (UG) stations. Challenges stemming from uncharted utilities, limited land, traffic, and rocky terrain have led to plan revisions and increased costs for diversions.
Purasawalkam Station stands out as particularly demanding due to tight utility diversion in a confined area. Diverse wet and dry utilities, along with material procurement, pose challenges. Purasawalkam`s intricate utility diversions, complicated by traffic and space constraints, required proactive construction of diaphragm panels.
Tiruvanmiyur Metro station is being developed as an on-road UG station due to space constraints. Uncharted utilities connected to nearby techno parks and rocky terrain have further complicated construction. Diversions for large wet utilities have incurred costs, and geological conditions complicated diaphragm wall and station construction.
Sterling Road Metro station faces challenges at the junction of four roads. Utility diversions interfering with the proposed shaft have required multiple stages and approvals. Overlapping utilities and traffic diversions have complicated the process. Rocky terrain and utility interconnections have added to the hurdles.
To address construction delays and upcoming tunnel boring machine (TBM) arrivals, CMRL has altered the station construction methodology at Sterling Road to a bottom-up approach. This new strategy involves building the station base-slab first and progressing upwards. The station`s prominent location and multi-directional traffic flow necessitate additional efforts for traffic regulation.
