Ranipet BHEL Feeder Road widening to finish by December

The State Highways Department aims to finish widening the BHEL Feeder Road in Ranipet into a four-lane stretch by December. Over 28,000 vehicles use the congested four-kilometer road every day, including goods trucks traveling to southern districts.

Project Details

The project costs 26 crore rupees and is funded through the Comprehensive Road Infrastructure Development Programme for 2025-26. It is supervised by Collector N. Priya Ravichandran, along with a team led by Highways Principal Secretary Chong Nam Zatak Siru, Chief Engineer S. Palanivel, and Superintending Engineer M.A. Rajadurai. The work turns the narrow route into a four-lane road with paved shoulders. It also adds 12 new culverts and two minor bridges across farming villages.

Traffic And Safety

Officials state the project helps south-bound trucks coming from Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh via Chittoor and Tiruvalam to reach places like Kancheepuram, Sholinghur, and Sriperumbudur. Assistant Engineer S. Ajith noted that the wider road will stop accidents involving pedestrians and two-wheelers. The route also serves as a shortcut that saves at least 10 kilometers for drivers going from Vellore, Katpadi, and Arcot toward Sholinghur, Arakkonam, and Tiruvallur compared to the Chennai-Bengaluru National Highway.

Additional Features

The upgrade includes street lights, footpaths, reflectors, signboards, and pedestrian crossings. New bus bays are being built for town and long-distance buses since the route connects to pilgrim spots like Tirupati, Puducherry, and Kancheepuram. Workers are also planting native tree saplings to increase green cover along the road.

Context

Road widening projects of this scale are common in fast-growing industrial and transport hubs across India to ease severe traffic congestion and cut travel times for heavy cargo. Upgrading rural and semi-urban feeder roads also helps connect growing manufacturing centers directly to major national highways without passing through crowded town centers.