Chennai Metro Rail has taken the first step towards chalking out plans for checking the feasibility to implement ‘Water Metro’ from Ennore to Mamallapuram along the Buckingham Canal.

According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), they have floated bids looking for a firm to prepare the Detailed Feasibility Report (DFR) and Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Water Metro project. CMRL may award the contract for this within two months. It may take a minimum of six to eight months to prepare both reports, after which it will be submitted to the Tamil Nadu government.

The study will examine if the project is feasible, ways to implement it, timeline for restoring the Buckingham Canal, cost estimate, financial model, and environment and social impact, among other aspects, officials said.

“The restoration of the canal is the massive work in this project. If that can be done, then it is possible to implement the Water Metro in the city. It is always better to carry out a study and keep the report ready to know if such a project can be done, and, hence, it is being taken up now,” an official said.

Published - August 13, 2026 08:38 pm IST