By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu sought Rs 20,000 crore from financial institutions including the Asian Development Bank in order to redevelop 1,700-km streets in 10 cities into ‘smart roads’.

Speaking at the workshop organised by the Commissionerate of Municipal Administration (CMA), Municipal Administration Minister SP Velumani said the State had already spent Rs 20,000 crores for providing basic infrastructure with projects worth Rs 50,000 crore in the pipeline.

While basic infrastructure development projects that occur at the subsurface level end with no visible improvement to the city’s landscape, the roads that are to be dug up for the proposed project, will incorporate ‘smart roads’ design standards even at the top, keeping in mind the needs of pedestrians and cyclists, a press note from the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) quoted the CMA as saying.

The State’s initiative, in partnership with the ITDP, aims to create walking and cycling network plans for 10 smart cities, namely, Vellore, Salem, Erode, Tirupur, Coimbatore, Tiruchy, Thanjavur, Madurai, Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi, the statement said. The workshop was conducted in association with the Asian Development Bank.