The Highways Department has begun the work to widen the 2.5-km-long section of Sardar Patel Road from IIT Madras to Chellammal College on the GST Road at a cost of ₹48 crore.On completion, it will become a six-lane wide road from the present four-lane wide facility. It will include service lanes and footpaths on either side, explained official sources. The widening is being taken up to prevent piling up of vehicles from the Taluk Office junction till the Chellammal College.A 500-m stretch has already been widened as part of construction of the flyover at the Madhya Kailash junction. The compound walls of government institutions, including Anna University and Highways Research Station will be removed and built further inside their properties.The Raj Bhavan will not be disturbed in any manner since it is a national park. The road will gradually move towards the right, to adjust the width from there on.Footpaths will come up on the storm-water drains from Taluk Office Road to Gandhi Mandapam junction where water will run towards the Research Station; and from the Children’s Park to IIT-M from where it will run to the Buckingham Canal via the drain at the Madhya Kailash flyover.Natural flowWater flows naturally from Anna University towards Gandhi Mandapam Road and also Anna University to Highways Research Station.The State government had sanctioned the project in September 2025.G. Ramakrishnan, a resident of Besant Nagar, said that the road should have widened much earlier. The other portion of the road from Ambika Appalam junction to the Thiru Vi Ka Bridge should also be widened to prevent vehicles bunching up in that portion.Steps can be taken to widen Greenways Road and Santhome High Road so that motorists can drive smoothly till beach road and beyond, he added.Published - December 29, 2025 12:36 am IST