Chennai is moving forward with a big road project. The Highways Department will shift 58 families from the banks of the Buckingham Canal at Thoraipakkam. Another 63 families on patta lands in Neelankarai will also be moved. This will allow work to start on a steel bridge linking Rajiv Gandhi Salai (OMR) with the East Coast Road (ECR). The bridge is a six-lane, high-level structure costing ₹36 crore. It will be 4 meters above the high tide line, letting boats pass underneath. This bridge is part of a ₹270 crore project to connect OMR with ECR. It starts from the extended Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam Radial Road and ends about 200 meters from ECR. Land acquisition alone cost ₹200 crore. Road construction and the bridge cost another ₹70 crore. The department has got all needed clearances, including from the Inland Waterway Authority and Water Resources Department. Authorities asked the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board to provide new homes for the 58 families near the Canal. Each home will cost ₹3.5 lakh. The Greater Chennai Corporation identified the families and issued notices. Once they move, a 680-metre road will extend to the bridge’s starting point. On the Neelankarai side, some people have challenged the land acquisition in court. The court is yet to give orders. A total of 63 houses there are set to be demolished. A. Francis, president of the Federation of Thoraipakkam Residents’ Welfare Associations, welcomed the improved connectivity. He said, “Already new apartment complexes are coming up along the new road. Foot overbridges with escalators and elevators should be constructed” to ensure pedestrian safety.