State agencies are planning to construct new link roads across the city to alleviate congestion caused by ongoing metro rail work and civic infrastructure projects. Among the proposals is a 900-metre link between Pillayar Koil Street and Padikuppam Main Road, designed to allow vehicles travelling towards Poonamallee and Maduravoyal to bypass the heavily congested Jawaharlal Nehru Road. This road-widening initiative will also provide access to Poonamallee High Road via the Rail Nagar bridge.
Another proposed link road is set to connect DGS Dhinakaran Salai with Durgabai Deshmukh Road, offering an alternative route for motorists travelling through Mylapore, Greenways Road, and Santhome to reach Adyar and Guindy. The state highways department has already issued a tender for this project, with the new roads expected to be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 0.37 billion. Once the 630-metre link is completed, the median on Durgabai Deshmukh Road will be removed to allow for one-way traffic. According to a senior highway official, the goal is to complete both projects within 12 months, facilitating CMRL work and reducing potential delays.
A third link road, which is already partially operational, serves as a temporary route to manage traffic on the St Thomas Mount-Mount Poonamallee Road. This road is expected to remain in use for the next two years. Due to the narrow stretch near Madras War Cemetery in Nandambakkam, Butt Road, and Paul Wells Road, which is insufficient to accommodate both traffic and construction, vehicles will be diverted through a temporary road on vacant land belonging to the defence ministry. Motorists heading towards Kathipara will turn left after the A2B signal, travel along Cantonment Road, Dhanakotti Raja Street, and SIDCO Industrial Estate South Phase Road to reach GST Road, and from there cross Olympia Junction to access the Kathipara flyover.
In addition, the highways department, in collaboration with the GCC, is planning to repair and widen several stretches along Jawaharlal Nehru Road and Greenways Road.
