The Bengaluru-Chennai expressway (Bangalore Chennai Expressway ) intends to connect the two capitals in a short period of time. It is the one among the Central Government’s projects to construct world-class expressways across India. The Bangalore Chennai expressway will be a Greenfield Alignment and is being executed by Public-Private Partnership (PPP) under HAM mode. The National Highway Authority of India owns (NHAI) it and the project is being constructed under the Bharatmala Pariyojana initiative.
The 260.85 km Bengaluru – Chennai Expressway (BCE) project, also known as NE-7, is a four-lane fully access-controlled Greenfield expressway that runs from Hoskote near Bengaluru, Karnataka, to Sriperumbudur near Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
The Bharatmala Pariyojana initiative is currently developing this greenfield project, which was first announced in 2016. The Construction of this expressway is currently in full swing.
Currently, on the existing routes between Bangalore and Chennai the distance is around 350 Kms which takes somewhere around 7 to 8 hours as travel time but after successful construction of the expressway, the distance will be reduced by approx 90 Kms & with the facility of high speed pavement of world class standard, the travel time between Bangalore & Chennai will reduce significantly to just 3 to 4 hours. This will save not only the time but a large amount of fuel as well.
Summary of the Chennai Bangalore Expressway project
- Total Estimated Cost: Rs. 18,000 crore
- Completion Deadline: 2025
- Project’s Total Length: 260.85 km
- Main Expressway’s Length: 258.80 km
- Approved Spur upto Kolar Gold Feilds: 2.05 km
- Lanes: 4 (expandable to 8)
- Owner: National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)
- Status: Land Acquisition and Financial Bid Evaluation
- Project Model: Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM)
These construction of these proposed structures is being done according to 8 lane expressway & because of this the lane expansion work in future will be carried out faster and with less effort.
Following Map Depicts the Route / alignment of the Bangalore Chennai Expressway project
Design of Bangalore Chennai Expressway
Egis – BCEOM International – SECON created the feasibility and preliminary design report for the Bangalore – Chennai Expressway in year 2009. In the report, it was observed that the expressway is predicted to become saturated in 2029 (with 4 lanes), 2037 (with 6 lanes), and 2041 (with 8 lanes).
Originally planned as an 8-lane highway from the start, the design of this expressway was reduced to 4 lanes in the middle of 2020 to accommodate anticipated traffic. All facilities (bridges, culverts, etc.) on the expressway will be constructed in such a way that will allow for future extension upto 8 lanes from the inside. The expressway will have a 21 metre wide depressed median.
The Bangalore Chennai Expressway will have flexible / Perpetual pavement i.e. the carriageway will be constructed using Bitumen or Asphalt.
The expressway is designed in such a way that vehicles can run as fast as 120 KmPH on the Carriageway.
To make the expressway completely access controlled, boundary walls / fencing of appropriate height is being constructed on either side of the expressway. By doing so, the accessibility of wildlife animals , cattles, domestic animals etc on the highway can be prohibited & this will result in seamless movement of the traffic without any hinderance & will ultimately reduce the risk of accidents.
- Proposed Right of Way (ROW) : 90m
- Proposed Carriageway: 2 x 7.5m
- Major Bridges: 9
- Medium Bridges: 9
- Minor Bridges: 144
- Number of Culverts: 143
- Railway Crossings: 4
- Number of Pedestrian Underpasses: 52
- Number of Vehicular Underpasses: 41
- Number of Flyovers: 17
The Greenfield Expressway runs across three states, beginning in Karnataka and passing via Malur, then through Andhra Pradesh to V Kota and Palamaner, and finally through Tamil Nadu to Gudiyatam, Arakkonam, and Sriperumbudur. It spans 75.64 kilometers in Karnataka, 88.30 kilometers in Andhra Pradesh, and 98.32 kilometers in Tamil Nadu. The road also travels through the districts of Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, and Vellore in Tamil Nadu. The corridor passes through a number of irrigation wells, canals, and other bodies of water. It is divided into four phases and 11 packages. Construction of all the 4 phases is being taken parallelly.
Phase I : Bangalore to Bethamangala
Phase II : Bethamangala to Gudipala
Phase III : Gudipala to Sriperumbudur
Phase IV : Sriperumbudur to Maduravoyal
Tender and Contractor Details of Bangalore Chennai Expressway Project
I (KARNATAKA)
| Package (Length) & Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (26.40 km): Bangalore to Malur (Km 0.000 to Km 26.400) | Dilip Buildcon Ltd |
| Package 2 (27.10 km): Malur to Bangarpet (Km 26.400 to Km 53.500) | Dilip Buildcon Ltd |
| Package 3 (17.50 km): Bangarpet to Bethamangala (Km 53.500 to Km 71.000) | KCC Buildcon is Lowest Bidder |
II (ANDHRA PRADESH & TAMIL NADU)
| Package (Length) & Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (25 km): Bethamangala – Baireddypalle (Km 71.000 to Km 96.000) | Montecarlo Ltd. (MCL) |
| Package 2 (31 km): Baireddypalle to Bangarupalem (Km 96.000 to Km 127.000) | APCO Infratech Pvt. Ltd. |
| Package 3 (29 km): Bangarupalem to Gudipala (Km 127.000 to Km 156.000) | Dilip Buildcon Ltd. (DBL) |
III (TAMIL NADU)
| Package (Length)&Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (24 km): Gudipala to Walajahpet (Km 156.000 to Km 180.000) | Montecarlo Ltd. (MCL) |
| Package 2 (24.5 km): Walajahpet to Arakkonam (Km 180.000 to Km 204.500) | KCC Buildcon |
| Package 3 (25.5 km): Arakkonam to Kancheepuram (Km 204.500 to Km 230.000) | DP Jain Infra is Lowest Bidder |
| Package 4 (32.1 km): Kancheepuram to Sriperambadur (Km 230.000 to Km 262.100) | RCC is Lowest Bidder |
IV (TAMIL NADU , CHENNAI)
| Package (Length)&Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (22.6 km): Sriperumbudur to Maduravoyal, Chennai from Km 262.00 to 284.600 on NH-48 (NH-4) | Tender Notice still Pending |