The year 2020 is just a day away and as the resorts along the East Coast Road (ECR) are all booked in advance to welcome the new year with celebrations, the government of Tamil Nadu is all set to make it more family-friendly. In an attempt to boost tourism-related activities in Chennai, the state government will operate a special tourist shuttle services on January 1 at a flat rate of Rs 10 per head.
In a statement released on Monday, the state government said that the shuttle service will be operated on January 1 by Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC). The service will start from TTDC house on Walajah Road and head to Island Grounds, where the tourists can visit and check out the tourism exhibition. The India Tourist and Industrial Fair is an annual event organised by the government of Tamil Nadu for 70 days in Chennai. The 46th India Tourist and Industrial Fair is underway at Island Grounds in Chennai.
From Walajah Road, the tourist service will go via Marina Beach, Vivekanandar Illam, Light House, Besant Nagar Ashtalakshmi temple and Velankanni church, Arupadai Murugan Temple, Guindy National Park and back to Walajah Road.
Making sure that the service covers places that cater to the interests of all members in a family, the government's press release stated that the users can hop in and out of the service at any point of the trip. The TTDC has fixed the fee at a flat rate of Rs 10. The route has been designed in such a way that one can cover all the important places to visit in Chennai in a single round trip.
This service will be operated from 9 am to 6 pm on January 1 and will be open to all. In October, an informal bilateral summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping took place in Mamallapuram amidst much fanfare. Though the historic site near Chennai recorded a spike in tourists after the Modi-Xi meet in October, the TTDC service does not cover Mamallapuram.