The opening of six Metro stations along the Poonamallee–Vadapalani stretch of the Chennai Metro’s Phase II, which runs along the Arcot Road corridor, has been pushed back to March 2027. That is nearly ten months past the original deadline. The affected stations are Alapakkam, Karambakkam, Valasaravakkam, Alwarthirunagar, Saligramam Warehouse, and Saligramam, where construction remains incomplete.
Revised Completion Timelines
Officials have set a revised timeline in two parts. Officials target station construction for completion by January 2027. Signalling work needs two more months, which points to March 2027, though sources warn it could run beyond that date.
The delay has a regulatory dimension. October 31, 2026 was the deadline set by the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) for the Porur–Vadapalani section. Because the work will not be finished by then, the Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) plans to request an extension. In the meantime, trains on this section are operating under a provisional authorisation, running manually at a maximum speed of 40 km/h.
Challenges Driving the Delays
Two main problems have slowed the work. Between March and June, a severe shortage of labour held up construction across several sites. Engineering challenges have also proved demanding, particularly on the double-decker corridor, where the Metro’s elevated structures for Corridors 4 and 5 run side by side. Building the elevated concourses and platforms in such a tight space has required careful planning and sequencing, and the work has taken longer than first projected.
Current Work Progress along Arcot Road
Progress is not uniform across the stretch. Platform construction is reported to be around 95 per cent complete, which suggests that most of the structural work on the platforms is done. The remaining effort is concentrated on the concourses and on the entry and exit points that passengers will use to reach the stations. CMRL has said that these areas are being fast-tracked to shorten the remaining timeline.
For commuters along Arcot Road, the revised schedule means that the stretch will not open as early as expected, and residents who had planned around the original date will need to wait several more months. Whether the March 2027 target holds will depend largely on how quickly the signaling systems can be installed and tested, a task that, according to some sources, could take longer than currently estimated.
