Impact of Rail Transit on Land Use and Development: Case Study of Suburban Rail in Chennai

It is a known fact that transport and land use are related to each other in a viscous cycle. The mass rail transit system is one of the major transport systems that is known to impact land use and accelerate growth in an area. With regard to the city of Chennai (state of Tamil Nadu, India), the impact of the mass rail transit system on land use and development along the rail corridor has been considerable. This paper attempts to study the impact of the rail transit system on land use in Chennai. The study has surveyed the trends in population density, land use, and patronage of the mass rail transit system. Results show that the suburban railway line has definitely accelerated development along the rail corridor in Chennai. However, it took several years before the impact could become visible. (C) 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.