Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner G.S. Sameeran said the storm-water drain where Kaliyamman Koil Street joins the Virugambakkam canal would be completed within two weeks. He inspected canal works in Kodambakkam zone costing an estimated ₹30 crore, including retaining walls, fencing and silt and waste removal. Chennai Metro Rail Limited is building a bridge across the canal for an estimated ₹12 crore; the existing bridge is being removed, and officials were instructed to complete the new bridge before the Northeast monsoon. The 6.70-km canal, 8–25 m wide, begins at Bhuvaneshwari Nagar in Virugambakkam, passes through Chinmaya Nagar, Saligramam and M.M.D.A. Colony, and joins the Cooum.

Chennai Metro Rail Limited has commenced work to replace the ageing bridge spanning the Virugambakkam-Arumbakkam canal on Kaliyamman Koil Street. The current bridge is a bottleneck causing daily traffic congestion and safety concerns. The bridge replacement project has been awarded to a private contractor at an estimated cost of Rs 12.31 crore. The new bridge will ease traffic flow, reduce road congestion, and make commuting faster and safer. The initiative forms part of a broader plan to strengthen the city's transportation network and resolve long-standing infrastructure challenges in the Virugambakkam-Arumbakkam area, which connects several residential and commercial hubs.

The Koyambedu–Butt Road stretch is 12km long and part of Corridor-5, the 44.6km Madhavaram–Sholinganallur line in Phase-2, featuring 13 elevated stations. It will connect with Phase-1 at Koyambedu through a skywalk. The line will serve residents of Virugambakkam, Manapakkam, and Ramapuram with quicker access to the city, office-goers to Porur IT corridor, visitors to Chennai Trade Centre, and traders to Koyambedu wholesale market. The 14.5km Poonamallee bypass–Vadapalani line is expected to start in February 2026, forming the first Phase-2 operational corridor. Four double-decker stations—Alwarthirunagar, Valasaravakkam, Karambakkam, and Alapakkam—will link the Koyambedu–Butt Road line with the Vadapalani–Poonamallee stretch. Civil work along Butt Road faces delays due to narrow roads and dense development. Some structures over Kathipara flyover are being constructed at night to avoid traffic disruption, with balanced cantilever work expected to finish possibly by April 2026. Initial plans to open Koyambedu–Alandur were revised, prioritising Koyambedu–Butt Road first.

Chennai Metro Rail’s Phase II construction has been under way since 2021. Along Arcot Road, work is building an elevated section from Poonamallee to Kodambakkam via Vadapalani, part of Corridor 4, a 26.1-km route from Poonamallee to Light House; the remaining section from Kodambakkam to Light House is underground.

Road width has narrowed, footpaths are missing and large craters affect sections near Saligramam, Vadapalani and Valasaravakkam near Kesavardhini. A Virugambakkam resident said a trip to Vadapalani that previously took about 15 minutes now takes 30 minutes or more during peak hours. Exposed construction equipment and materials pose risks, particularly to two-wheelers. Residents said repairs erode quickly and called for contractor accountability and quality work. CMRL officials said they had asked the contractor to relay the road and would conduct an urgent inspection to resolve the issue.

Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner J Kumaragurubaran said dredging floats were deployed at Otteri and Virugambakkam canals, with desilting to begin shortly. The Water Resources Department handed maintenance of Otteri Nullah and Virugambakkam canals to the corporation on Friday. Desilting was already underway at Otteri Nullah before the handover; four additional dredging floats were positioned along the canal’s 10.5 km stretch on Friday.

Residents said inadequate desilting had reduced the canals’ carrying capacity. Sandhya Vedullapalli of the Federation of Anna Nagar Residents Association said water hyacinth was often cleared from Otteri canal while silt remained, and that silt had accumulated up to three feet in the neglected balancing channel between 3rd Avenue and 4th Main Road in Anna Nagar. She said Otteri canal overflowed during recent rains and water did not recede the following day.