South Asia's biggest bus terminal opens in Chennai

South Asia’s biggest bus terminal was opened in Chennai by CM Jayalalitha. The biggest bus terminal has been constructed at Koyambedu in Chennai outskirts.

The terminal has been built in an acre of 36.57 lands with a cost of about 130crores. This terminal was conceptualized by Jayalalitha during her CM period in 1991-1996 and later Chief Minister Karunanidhi laid the foundation for it on 6th June 1999.

This biggest bus terminal has the capacity to hold 270 inter-state, inter-district buses which includes 30 city buses. So on an average the terminal has the capacity to operate 2,000 incoming and outgoing buses.

Later on Jayalalitha flagged off buses to Kanchipuram, Velankanni, Nagore, Bangalore and Thiruvananthapuram.

The biggest terminal was co-funded by the Hudco and the Tamil Nadu Urban Project Development Corporation and was built by the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA).

The Koyambedu bus terminals has three reservation counters, a 18,000 sqft waiting hall with 1,500 seats, 60 PCO/STD booths, 60 information boards along with route details. It also has 3 hotels, 3 restaurants, 30 cafeteria, and 31 shops, parking for two and four wheelers. Apart from 2 and 4 wheelers parking’s it has an exclusive parking area for 500 auto rickshaws and 250 call taxis.

It also has facilities like toilets, drinking water, cloak rooms and offices for 10 travel agencies.

In addition there has been a proposal to set a police outpost and plans have been taken to plant sapling in and around the terminal.