By Express News Service CHENNAI: The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) launched the ‘Mega Streets Project’ which is set to turn arterial roads pedestrian friendly with continuous footpaths, carriageways, on-street parking, and underground utilities. Municipal Administration Minister SP Velumani, who inaugurated the project and unveiled the Adoption of Chennai Street Design and Implementation Guidelines on Tuesday, said the proposed area for the project is 426 square kilometres, which includes 400 km of GCCs streets and 286 km of roads belonging to other departments. ‘’The first phase of the project will focus on 70 sq km area, transforming 110 km long arterial and interior roads in Anna Nagar, Tondiarpet, Nungambakkam, Mylapore, Velachery and Adyar,’’ the Minister said. Some of the roads to be redesigned in this area are R. K. Salai, Gandhi Mandapam Road, Sardar Patel Road, New Avadi Road, Anna Nagar 3rd avenue, Cathedral Road, LB Road, Thiruvottiyur High Road, Royapettah High Road, Kutchery Road and Greenways Road among others. ‘’The redesigned pathways in streets will have facilities like children’s park, benches for elders to sit, rainwater harvesting systems, drinking water taps. This will ensure safety for women, children, elderly and cyclists,’’ said the Minister, adding that for the next thirty years, damage to roads won’t be there. An approximate estimate for the whole project is about Rs. 10,000 crores and the part of it is expected to be funded by German based KFW bank while Corporation is on talks with Beijing based AIIB bank too. Corporation Commissioner G Prakash said six consultants have been selected for the first phase of project and allocations are expected in the upcoming State budget. ‘’About 70 percent of the funds are expected as grants while 20 percent as loans and 10 percent will be from Corporation’s own exchequer,’’ said Prakash. For the operative and maintenance funds, said Prakash, the civic body would tap in various measures to generate revenue such as pulling up Optical Fibre companies to pay back dues, on-street parking charges, and marketing exhibition points alongside the streets. ‘’Currently, not even 20 percent is collected from the OFCs. If we pull them up, it would increase the revenue by four times. Street parking charges too could generate revenue ranging from `1000 to 2000 crore,’’ added Prakash. He said that as the future of vehicles are electric, high-speed charging stations alongside the streets could be seen as a revenue model. Shreya Gadepalli, South Asia Director of Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, which is the knowledge partner for this project, said the project intends to transform streets across the city from being mere conduits of motor vehicle traffic into public spaces that thrive with life.

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