Traffic changes take effect from September 23 for vehicles travelling via Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR/Rajiv Gandhi Salai), Thoraipakkam and Pallavaram Radial Road. OMR, Chennai’s IT corridor, is experiencing congestion amid ongoing metro rail construction.

Tamil Nadu hosts over 465 GCCs, approximately 10%-15% of India's entire GCC ecosystem, with 405 in Chennai. The State added roughly 65,000 GCC jobs in financial year 2025 and has 4.5 lakh GCC-ready professionals.

Tamil Nadu's Industries Minister announced the 'Tamil Nadu GCC Corridor and Growth Plan' along three zones: Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road, Mount-Poonamallee High Road (SH-55), and Rajiv Gandhi Salai (OMR). These zones will have higher Floor Space Index (FSI) and improved common and shared infrastructure.

Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road already hosts established IT infrastructure and serves as a north-south connector with direct connectivity to Chennai International Airport via Pallavaram Flyover. Mount-Poonamallee High Road is an emerging commercial corridor benefiting from upcoming Poonamallee Metro Line development. Rajiv Gandhi Salai is the established premier IT corridor with highest GCC concentration.

Increased FSI will enable existing GCC campuses to expand vertically without additional land acquisition. According to Colliers, GCCs accounted for around 55% of Chennai's office leasing in the first half of 2026, up from 49% in 2025.

The influx of skilled professionals is expected to drive residential development across mid-to-premium segments. GCCs bring demand for housing, retail, hospitality, schools, healthcare and social infrastructure.

Recent MoUs include Bosch Global Software Technologies establishing a Global Software Development Centre for automotive software and autonomous systems expected along OMR or Mount-Poonamallee corridor. Chubb signed an MoU in July to expand insurance operations through a GCC in Chennai.

A 2-km elevated bridge will replace part of Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road from Chennai One to Kamakshi Hospital junction. The bridge will be six lanes with 200-metre spans and 2.5-metre diameter piers. Seven hectares of Pallikaranai marshland will be restored where the road currently exists. The project cost is ₹450 crore with a two-year construction timeline; no land acquisition is needed. The road currently carries approximately 1.25 lakh vehicles daily and connects Rajiv Gandhi Salai with Velachery, Pallikaranai, Madipakkam, Kilkattalai and GST Road. Removing the road will benefit flood-prone areas including Ram Nagar, Velachery and Madipakkam. Currently only 90 metres of the 2,100-metre road has culverts; the marshland requires 15,000 cusecs of water flow to Okkiyam Maduvu. The detailed project report is in final stages.

Tamil Nadu is establishing a dedicated Global Capability Centre (GCC) corridor to support Chennai's expanding tech and corporate sector.

Corridors covered:

• OMR (Rajiv Gandhi Salai): 45 km IT corridor from Madhya Kailash to Mahabalipuram/ECR; identified stretch between Madhya Kailash and Kelambakkam (25 km) through Perungudi, Thoraipakkam, Sholinganallur, Navalur, Kelambakkam
• Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road: 10-14 km, east-west corridor linking GST Road to OMR; current proposal covers 7.4 km between Pallavaram Bridge and Thoraipakkam Junction
• Mount-Poonamallee High Road: 11 km arterial road through Nandambakkam, Manapakkam, Porur to Poonamallee; key commercial and IT corridor with projects like DLF IT Park

Key features:

• Enhanced Floor Space Index (FSI) for eligible GCC campuses to enable additional office space
• Infrastructure improvements for roads, public transport, water supply, sewage, drainage, electricity, digital infrastructure
• Current average land price: ₹5,000-10,500 per sq. ft; average 2BHK rent: ₹18,000-45,000 per month
• GCC sector added 94,000 jobs in 2023-24

Expected impact: Increased demand for housing, retail, hospitality and services in surrounding areas; establishment as major employment hubs.

Tamil Nadu proposed a phased elevated road from Chennai through Mamallapuram to Puducherry to cut coastal travel times, plus a passenger boat service on the route with the Union government and Puducherry administration. The feasibility study was sanctioned in 2025-26; further studies and technical work will be expedited.

A Chennai–Coimbatore–Thoothukudi industrial corridor would use expressways to connect economic centres with national and state highways. The state will seek faster work on the eight-lane Chennai–Kanniyakumari road and plans elevated roads from Perungalathur to Chengalpattu and from Lighthouse to Thiru Vi Ka Bridge via Santhome and RA Puram, and from Padi to Thiruninravur. Other works include improving Chennai entry points at ECR, Poonamallee and Madhavaram; the Vysarpadi ROB and Basin Bridge; and the Cooum bridge at Koyambedu.

Allocations include ₹280 crore for Pallavaram–Thoraipakkam Radial Road upgrades; ₹120 crore for Anna Salai, Jawaharlal Nehru Salai and EVR Periyar Salai; ₹500 crore for the AI-enabled Safe Roads Project; ₹250 crore for road maintenance; ₹2,550 crore for 2,000 rural roads; and ₹1,000 crore for 500 bus-route roads in seven corporations. Around 18,000 accident-prone state-highway locations were identified; 25 hospitals and primary health centres will receive emergency-care upgrades under CARE. Tamil Nadu Highways Vision 2036 is planned.