Nallur Toll Plaza to Shift to Durainallur, Easing Chennai‑Kolkata Highway Congestion

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has finally given the green light to a move that many commuters have been yearning for – the Nallur toll plaza on the Chennai‑Kolkata National Highway will be shifted to Durainallur, roughly 13 km away.

For years the plaza earned a reputation for snarling traffic during peak hours. Every morning and evening, thousands of vehicles, including school buses and college‑going students, would crawl to a halt, waiting for their turn to pay the toll. Residents of nearby localities such as Karanodai, Janapanchathiram, Nallur and Periyapalayam say they’re relieved.

“We’ve been pleading for this change for ages,” says K. Suresh Kumar, a long‑time resident. “With the plaza gone, the daily grind for students and commuters will become a lot less stressful.” Another local, Ramesh, added a practical suggestion: “The road at the plaza is wider than it should be, making navigation tricky. If the stretch is narrowed and the stray shops regularised, it would help everyone.”

Sources within NHAI explain that the existing spot has become untenable. New feeder roads sprouted around the area, allowing drivers to bypass the plaza entirely – a situation that, paradoxically, eats into toll revenue. Moreover, the plaza sits inside municipal limits, prompting officials to relocate it outside the town’s jurisdiction.

Contracts with the current toll‑operator are set to expire in May next year. NHAI hopes to have the design for a new, modern, multi‑lane free‑flow tolling system – one that works without traditional booths or operators – ready by then.

About 50,000 passenger‑car units ply this stretch every day, so the shift is expected to cut waiting times dramatically and restore a smoother flow of traffic along one of the region’s busiest arteries.