Bangalore–Chennai Expressway – Information & Status
260.85 km Bengaluru – Chennai Expressway (BCE) project, officially NE-7, is an under construction 4-lane access-controlled road with a route alignment connecting Hoskote near Bengaluru, Karnataka with Sriperumbudur near Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
This greenfield project was first announced in 2011 and is now being developed under Bharatmala Pariyojana program. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid its foundation stone on May 26, 2022.
Bangalore-Chennai Expressway is expected to be completed and opened in December 2025 (current deadline).
- Total Estimated Cost: Rs. 17,000 crore
- Project’s Total Length: 260.85 km
- Main Expressway’s Length: 258.80 km
- Approved Spur: 2.05 km
- Lanes: 4 (expandable to 8)
- Owner: National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)
- Status: Land Acquisition and Financial Bid Evaluation
- Project Model: Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM)
Design
Bangalore – Chennai Expressway’s feasibility and preliminary design report was prepared by Egis – BCEOM International – SECON in 2009. The report suggests the expressway will get saturated in 2029 (4 lane), 2037 (6 lane) and 2041 (8 lane).
This expressway was originally envisioned as an 8 lane road from the get-go, but was downgraded to 4 lanes in mid-2020 keeping the projected traffic in mind. The expressway will feature a 21 meter wide depressed median and all structures (bridges, culverts etc.) will be built up to allow for future widening to 8 lanes from the inside.
- Proposed ROW: 90m
- Proposed Carriageway: 2 x 7.5m
- Total Number of Bridges: 162
- Minor Bridges: 144
- Medium Bridges: 9
- Major Bridges: 9
- Railway Crossings: 4
- Number of Culverts: 143
- Number of Pedestrian Underpasses: 52
- Number of Vehicular Underpasses: 41
- Number of Flyovers: 17
Spurs
Four spurs have been proposed for inclusion in the Bangalore – Chennai Expressway project. Within those, only Spur-3 has been approved but with a reduced length of 2.050 km. Spur-1 has been subsumed into the 280.8 km Bangalore Satellite Town Ring Road project.
- Spur-1 (95.63 km): KM 14 of Expressway to Dobbaspete on NH-4
- Spur-2 (3.58 km): KM 0 to NH-4 near Konadasapura (east of Bengaluru)
- Spur-3 (6.47 km): KM 50.91 to Kolar Gold Fields
- Spur-4 (7.44 km): KM 190.01 to Katpadi
In Chennai, a 22.6 km 6-lane elevated expressway (Phase 4) will be built from Sriperumbudur to Maduravoyal from Km 262.00 to 284.600 on NH-48 (old NH-4).
Route Map
This route map of Bangalore – Chennai Expressway displays all key interchanges with other highways and roads (sourced from NHAI’s tender documents).
Tender Status & Contracts
The project has been divided up into 4 phases and 11 sections – all to be executed in parallel. Length displayed below is for the main carriageway. The scope of each may include additional work for approach roads.
Phase 1 (Karnataka)
| Package (Length) & Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (26.40 km): Bangalore to Malur (Km 0.000 to Km 26.400) | Dilip Buildcon |
| Package 2 (27.10 km): Malur to Bangarpet (Km 26.400 to Km 53.500) | Dilip Buildcon |
| Package 3 (17.50 km): Bangarpet to Bethamangala (Km 53.500 to Km 71.000) | KCC Buildcon is Lowest Bidder |
Phase 2 (Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu)
| Package (Length) & Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (25 km): Bethamangala – Baireddypalle (Km 71.000 to Km 96.000) | Montecarlo Ltd. (MCL) |
| Package 2 (31 km): Baireddypalle to Bangarupalem (Km 96.000 to Km 127.000) | APCO Infratech Pvt. Ltd. |
| Package 3 (29 km): Bangarupalem to Gudipala (Km 127.000 to Km 156.000) | Dilip Buildcon Ltd. (DBL) |
Phase 3 (Tamil Nadu)
| Package (Length) & Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (24 km): Gudipala to Walajahpet (Km 156.000 to Km 180.000) | Montecarlo Ltd. (MCL) |
| Package 2 (24.5 km): Walajahpet to Arakkonam (Km 180.000 to Km 204.500) | KCC Buildcon |
| Package 3 (25.5 km): Arakkonam to Kancheepuram (Km 204.500 to Km 230.000) | DP Jain Infra is Lowest Bidder |
| Package 4 (32.1 km): Kancheepuram to Sriperambadur (Km 230.000 to Km 262.100) | RCC is Lowest Bidder |
Phase 4 (Chennai, TN)
DPR Preparer: VAX Consultants – L&T Infrastructure Engineering Ltd. (JV)
| Package (Length) & Section | Contractor / Status |
| Package 1 (22.6 km): Sriperumbudur to Maduravoyal from Km 262.00 to 284.600 on NH-48 (NH-4) | Tender Notice Pending |
Page last updated: December 27, 2023. Have a question or spot an issue? Let me know here.