Poonamallee High Road

The “med street” of Chennai, the Poonamallee High Road stretches for 14 km between the Muthuswamy Bridge and Maduravoyal Junction. Its nickname comes from the fact that it’s littered with a number of medical centres, hospitals, medical colleges, and doctors’ chambers. This arterial road connects the eastern and the western parts of the city, and passes through different residential localities like Koyambedu, Shenoy Nagar, Poonamallee, and Maduravoyal.

Poonamallee High Road is a part of the National Highway NH-4 in Chennai, and is also called Periyar EVR High Road. This road is teeming with life throughout the day; because of which the residents of this locality are largely youngsters. Naturally, the residential projects here are mostly multi-storey apartment buildings, with many new projects lined up for development.

Key Projects in Poonamallee High Road : 

Connectivity and Transit Points

Both the Chennai Central Railway Station and Chennai Mofusil Bus Terminal (CMBT) lie on the Poonamallee High Road. Chennai Central is the main railway station in the city. A very large number of trains headed to different parts of the country can be boarded from here.

The CMBT is located on the Poonamallee High Road near Koyambedu. An impressive fact about the bus terminal is that it’s the third largest in Asia, with 180 bus bays, 6 platforms, and extensive parking facilities. This terminal is touted as the most important exit and entry point in the city.

The popular modes of travel in the locality are MTC buses, which carry over five million passengers every single day, shared and metred auto-rickshaws, and maxicabs.

Major Landmarks

•          Madras Medical College
•          Chennai Central Railway Station
•          Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital
•          St. Andrew’s Church
•          Ripon Building
•          Moore Market Complex

Factors for Growth in the Past

One of the biggest growth factors for the Poonamallee High Road has been the large number of healthcare centres scattered along the road, including hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, and pharmacies. The two major hospitals of Chennai, Rajiv Gandhi General Medical Hospital and Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital are the most reputed healthcare landmarks situated here. Thanks to this array of healthcare centres, Poonamallee High Road has become the medical hub of Chennai.

The Poonamallee High Road withstands heavy traffic that moves between the eastern and western parts of the city. Heavy container vehicles from the Chennai port ply on this road at night, making it extremely busy. But the silver lining of this road is that it connects the two principal transit points, Chennai Central Railway Station and Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus. The strategic location of the road has caused the market to keep developing further.

Residential Market

The residential market along the Poonamallee High Road consists mostly of multi-storey apartments. Next on the list are independent plots and layouts, but they aren’t in large numbers compared to apartment. The demand for plots has, however, increased and the plot prices have doubled in 2013. Most apartment buildings consist of 1 BHK and 2 BHK apartments in Poonamallee High Road and the average square-foot price is around Rs 3,500.

Poonamallee High Road is also a prime investment hotspot, with an expected capital appreciation of 50 per cent over the next couple of years.

Major Challenges

Noise from the heavy, unending traffic is a major civic challenge for the Poonamallee High Road residents. With traffic also comes pollution - another civic issue in the locality. There’s no respite for residents even at night, because of the movement of trucks and container vehicles. The traffic also causes wear and tear of the road, necessitating frequent relaying of the road.

Poonamallee High Road locality is sometimes affected by water shortage. This is a critical challenge for the region’s authorities, as the hospitals and nursing homes on this road get affected quickly. The temporary remedy so far has been the Metrowater tankers, but a more permanent solution is desired.

Future Prospects for Growth

Infrastructure is the principal growth factor for the Poonamallee High Road in the future. Corridor 2 of the upcoming Chennai Metro Rail project, comprising an array of elevated and underground stations, will be dotted along this road. One of these terminals is even slated to be constructed inside a bus terminus. With the completion of this metro rail project, connectivity of this region will be significantly enhanced, driving strong, tangible real estate growth in the locality.

Three flyovers are also being constructed along this stretch. These flyovers, between Anna Arch and Nelson Manickan Road; Koyambedu and Anna Arch; and Poonamallee High Road and Anna Nagar are designed to beat down the locality’s most important civic challenge, the heavy traffic, and open up the locality to further growth.