Figure 8 Proposed Land Use Plan Chennai City 2026

P r o p o s e d L a n d U s e P l a n C h e n n a i C i t y 2 0 2 6

Figure 8 Proposed Land Use Plan Chennai City 2026

CH A PT E R -4 A N A LY SIS A N D D IS CUSS IO N

T r a n s p o r t a t i o n :

 The SMP predicted city expansion along Chennai's radial corridors, as well as hotspot developments along national roads and industrial areas. However, despite attempts to integrate transportation planning into current land use, the SMP has failed to fulfil the demands of land use development, particularly along IT corridors. In addition, the SMP has failed to manage resources and regulate parking in the city. To regulate traffic and improve commuting times in the city, effective parking laws and management systems are essential.  Finally, the SMP has not considered integrated transport management or multimodal transit systems, despite Chennai's enormous public transportation network. It's possible that a single-window system or smooth transition planning might have influenced commuters to utilise public transportation. The failure to provide pleasant and reliable public transportation has resulted in a 6.5 percent yearly growth rate in the population of customised automobiles.  An increase in private automobile ownership and a decline in public transportation demand are driving the adoption of sustainable transportation solutions in Chennai. Chennai has the greatest automobile density, with 2,900 vehicles per kilometre. According to the congestion index, more than 33.8 percent of the highways are congested on at than one occasion. The city's quality of air has worsened as a result of these issues.

 Despite the fact that Chennai's coastal position has helped to enhance the city's air quality, the city still ranks second among the 14 cities analysed in particulate matter emissions per day (more than 1000 kg) due to urban transport. The city comes fourth in terms of NO2 emission from urban commute, after Delhi, Bengaluru, and

Hyderabad (10,000-12,000 kg per day) (CSE, n.d.).

E x p l o s i o n O f U r b a n i z a t i o n

 The population and urban "grey areas" have risen in tandem with the economy. Large quantities of wetland loss and water system contamination have resulted from severe

land use change.Floods were exacerbated by a lack of wetland, which serves as a sponge, soaking up rainwater.  It is estimated that CMA would house a population of 126 lakhs by 2026, of which

Chennai City alone would account for 58 lakhs.  According to a report issued to the Tamil Nadu Assembly by the Comptroller and

Auditor General (CAG) in the context of the 2015 Chennai floods, the Chennai

Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) awarded development licences without adhering to land use planning regulations. As a result, the area beneath bodies of water reduced by 2389 acres between 1979 and 2016. (Comptroller and Auditor

General of India (CAG), 2017)  As a result, rainfall runoff has nowhere else to go and gathers on streets, causing flooding.  Such catastrophic flooding has been caused by mismanagement and violations of urban planning regulations.

N e g l i g e n c e A n d D e n i a l O f P l a n n i n g A u t h o r i t i e s :

Planning authorities don’t have a complete record of all the waterbodies of metropolitan area and they have assigned different land use to such lands due to lack of data available and pressure to house the rapidly increasing population of Chennai metropolitan area which leads to construction of building on such lands and such colonies our neighbourhood suffers the most during flood like situation e.g. Sidco Nagar, Tilak Nagar etc.

The refusal of the city planning authorities to pay attention to minor streams and channels

The urban planning authority doesn't really cross-reference the tehsildar's certification stating that there is no water body on the intended development site.

The authorities have issued a building permission. This results in new constructions on the waterbody's land.

R educed water reservoir capacity and natural drainage for rainfall, and these locations are particularly vulnerable to flooding after heavy rains.