Kilambakkam Bus Terminus Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus | |||||
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 One of the gates of the bus terminus | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Other names | KCBT | ||||
| Location | Grand Southern Trunk Road,Kilambakkam,Chennai Tamil Nadu India | ||||
| Coordinates | 12°52′22″N80°04′55″E / 12.8727°N 80.0819°E /12.8727; 80.0819 | ||||
| System | Bus terminus | ||||
| Owned by | CMDA | ||||
| Platforms | 215 | ||||
| Bus routes | |||||
| Bus operators |
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| Construction | |||||
| Structure type | At-grade | ||||
| Parking | Yes | ||||
| Bicycle facilities | Yes | ||||
| Accessible | yes | ||||
| History | |||||
| Opened | 30 December 2023 | ||||
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Kilambakkam Bus Terminus, officiallyKalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus, is a bus terminus inKilambakkam, a southern suburb ofChennai, India. Spread over an area of 88.52 acres (358,200 m2), it is situated along theGST Road. It was built to decongest theChennai Mofussil Bus Terminus atKoyambedu, and was opened to public on 30 December 2023. It is an integrated bus terminus for mofussil buses operated by government transport corporations and contract carriages. The terminus is connected to other parts of theChennai Metropolitan Area and suburbs byMTC buses.
In 2016,Government of Tamil Nadu planned to construct a new bus terminus atKilambakkam nearVandalur in SouthChennai as a part of a plan to de-congest the existing bus terminus atKoyambedu.[1][2] The area earmarked for the construction of the Kilambakkam Bus terminus was within a protected zone declared byArchaeological Survey of India (ASI) as it containedmegalithic sites. According to theAncient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act (AMASR), all constructions are banned within 100 meters of ASI protected areas and any construction of a building with 200 meters of such areas requires permission from National Monument Authority (NMA).[3]Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) commissioned Reach Foundation to undertake a heritage impact assessment study on the development of Kilambakkam Bus Terminus.[4]
The works were ceased as clearance was pending from the National Monument Authority.[5] In February 2019, clearance was given for the construction of bus terminus with specific conditions including no further development in the 100 meter prohibited area except greenery and the involvement of archaeologists at the time of excavation and mitigation measures to be taken at the time of construction if artefacts are found.[1][6] The foundation stone for the project was laid on 22 February 2019 byChief Minister of Tamil NaduEdappadi K. Palaniswami.[7] Kilambakkam Bus Terminus was officially renamed as Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus and Kalaignar Centenary Bus Terminus was inaugurated on 30 December 2023 byTamil Nadu chief ministerM. K. Stalin.[8][9]
The project was projected to cost₹3.25 billion (US$38 million) including₹1.75 billion (US$21 million) for the main terminal buildings. The operational expenditure was estimated at₹6.60 billion (US$78 million) per year with projected revenues of₹10.20 billion (US$120 million).[10] The projected ended up costing₹3.94 billion (US$47 million) .[11]
The bus terminus is built on a land area of 88.52 acres (35.82 ha) with a total built-up area of 640,000 sq ft (59,000 m2). It was done on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model.[12] The terminus consists of 215 bus bays including 130 bays for government buses and 85 bays for private contract carriages, situated across 14 platforms in 8 bus fingers. It has a 3.99 acres (1.61 ha) lay-off area for buses and a parking area that can accommodate 324 cars and 2,769 two-wheelers.[13][14][15] The bus station is equipped with ticket counters, information centers and other essential facilities liketoilets,drinking water,dormitories, feeding rooms,police station,pharmacy,fire station,ATMs.[14] The bus station has a commercial complex which hostsrestaurants and retail stores.[10] It has been constructed to betransgender anddisabled friendly.[16]
Last mile connectivity is provided byMetropolitan Transport Corporation buses. Concerns have been raised by the public regarding last mile connectivity to the bus terminus as it is located away from the city center and there is no existingsuburban railway link to the station.[17]
The bus terminus is located along theSouth line of theChennai Suburban Railway. The construction of a newKilambakkam railway station began in 2024 and the bus station will be connected to it by askyway.[18] An extension of theBlue Line ofChennai Metro from theChennai International Airport to the bus terminus was announced by theGovernment of Tamil Nadu, with feasibility studies completed and land surveys being conducted in 2023.[19][20]
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