Chennai: Congestion on the GST Road is expected to decrease considerably as the Airports Authority of India has acquired 19.06 acres of land behind the Meenambakkam metro station for ₹278 crore to enhance the parking facilities for goods carriers that make a beeline for the Chennai airport’s cargo terminal.
Three different proposals are under review to develop the 19.06 acres, keeping the long-term needs of the airport in mind,” said an AAI official. Chennai airport’s cargo terminal handles about 400 tonnes of export and 800 tonnes of import cargo daily, nearly 30% more than last year. Hundreds of trucks are parked daily on the roadside due to a shortage of parking space around the cargo terminal.
This land was once a residential colony of erstwhile Indian Airlines employees. “There is a stadium in the colony, which would be immediately converted into a parking lot for vehicles that come to deliver and pick up goods from the cargo terminal. Some demolition work is needed to increase parking space further. The cargo terminal sees a rush of goods carriers between 3pm and 8pm for at least four days a week. Traffic on GST Road is affected in the evening as trucks and private buses park on both sides near the airport. The Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) has been urging AAI to shift the cargo terminal to the rear side of the airport to reduce congestion.
AI Assets Holding Ltd officially transferred the land parcel to AAI on Monday.
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