🚧 Broadway Bus Stand Closes for 3-Year Makeover
One of Chennai’s oldest and busiest transport hubs, the Broadway Bus Terminus, has officially begun its transformation. The historic terminal, handling over 850 buses daily, is being shut down to make way for a ₹822 crore 10-storey multimodal transit hub, marking a new era in urban mobility.
To ensure uninterrupted bus operations during this massive upgrade, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) has initiated a temporary shift of operations to a newly developed Royapuram terminal.
🏗️ Royapuram: The Interim Lifeline
Located on 3.45 acres of land leased from the Chennai Port Trust, near the Royapuram NRT bridge, temporary bus terminal has been constructed to serve as a stopgap for buses previously operating out of Broadway.
- Capacity: Up to 70 buses at a time
- Facilities: Covered waiting areas, accessible restrooms, timekeeper booths, lactation rooms, and crew rest spaces—all built using modular container-based structures.
- Targeted Routes: Over 550 buses, especially those bound for south and west Chennai, will operate from Royapuram.
- Cost: ₹7.5 crore for construction and setup
Despite being structurally ready since May 2025, the terminal’s full-scale activation is still awaited as final utility and traffic alignments are being worked out.
🛣️ What’s Coming at Broadway: A Multimodal Urban Hub
The old Broadway terminal will be razed to construct an integrated 10-floor transit facility by Chennai Metro Asset Management Ltd (CMAML)—a joint venture of CMRL and TIDCO. Key features include:
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| Bus Bays | Ground-level operation for MTC buses |
| Metro Access | Seamless entry/exit to Metro Corridor 4 |
| Commercial Floors | Retail, food courts, offices |
| Parking | 9-storey parking for cars, bikes, feeder autos |
| Sustainability | Solar panels, EV charging, green building compliance |
The project is expected to take ~2 to3 years, pushing the Broadway reopening timeline to to 2027 – 2028.
📍 Public Impact & Rerouting Plan
- Royapuram will serve all major MTC services including Adyar, Saidapet, Tambaram, and Velachery.
- Around 130 northern-bound buses are being rerouted to Anna Square to reduce congestion at Royapuram.
- Commuters are advised to track new route numbers, and check MTC official channels for updates.
⚙️ Challenges Ahead
While the idea of a seamless temporary shift is welcome, on-ground reports as of mid-June 2025 suggest no visible movement of buses at the Royapuram site. Delays in utility handover and traffic synchronization may delay full operations.