Chennai Egmore Railway Station: The Visitor Guide

Chennai Egmore — station code MS, Ezhumbur in Tamil — is the city's second great rail terminus, a landmark Indo-Saracenic building of domes and arches dating to the early 1900s. Where Central connects Chennai to the rest of India, Egmore is the gateway to southern Tamil Nadu, with express trains fanning out toward the temple towns and the coast, plus suburban platforms on the local network.

Egmore vs Central — which station is yours?

The single most useful thing to know: Chennai has two major long-distance termini a couple of kilometres apart, and they serve different directions.

• Egmore (MS) — most express trains within Tamil Nadu and toward the south: Madurai, Tiruchirappalli (Trichy), Rameswaram, Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari-bound routes and more.
• Central (MAS) — long-distance trains to the rest of India: Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Kerala routes.

Always check the station code on your ticket — MS is Egmore, MAS is Central. Allow 20–40 minutes to move between them by road depending on traffic (or one Metro hop — see below).

Orientation & the building

Egmore sits on Gandhi Irwin Road in the Egmore district, a neighbourhood of colonial-era institutions — the Government Museum and its famous bronze gallery is a short walk away. The station has platforms under one roof handling both long-distance expresses and suburban locals; big display boards in the concourse show train numbers, names and platforms, with announcements in Tamil and English. Coach-position indicators on platforms tell you where your carriage will stop — worth checking before the train pulls in.

Facilities: parking, cloakroom, waiting

• Parking. Paid two-wheeler and car parking operates on the station approach — tariffs are posted at the gate (short stays run to tens of rupees; indicative). Use the drop-off lane if you're only letting someone out.
• Cloakroom. A left-luggage cloakroom takes locked bags for a small per-bag, per-day fee against your ticket/ID — useful for a hands-free museum visit between trains.
• Waiting & retiring rooms. Waiting halls serve different classes, and retiring rooms can be booked by ticketed passengers via IRCTC.
• Assistance. Wheelchair help and porters (agree the fee first) are available — ask at the enquiry counter.

Food at and around Egmore

Inside, refreshment stalls and canteens cover the tea-coffee-tiffin essentials at railway prices, with platform vendors meeting arriving trains. Around the station, Egmore and neighbouring Chetpet and Purasawalkam hide some of the city's best-loved eating — from old-school tiffin rooms to biryani institutions. Browse our curated restaurants and the neighbourhood food guide if you have an hour to spare; a busy tiffin room within a few streets of the station will never let you down.

Getting out: metro, cabs & autos

• Chennai Metro. Egmore has its own underground Metro station on the Green Line — one short hop from Central's interchange, which opens the whole network (Blue Line to the airport included). Cheap, air-conditioned, traffic-proof.
• App cabs (Uber/Ola). Book in the app and follow the pickup signs; fares are upfront. Easiest door-to-door option with luggage.
• Autos. Plentiful outside on Gandhi Irwin Road — agree the fare before boarding or ask for the meter.
• Suburban trains. Egmore's local platforms connect the suburban network for onward hops without leaving the railway.

Heading to or from the airport? The Metro (Green Line to Central, change to Blue) is the calm route; our airport guide covers the arrival end.

Staying near Egmore

Egmore is actually one of the handiest visitor bases in Chennai — a district of budget and mid-range hotels (Kennet Lane is wall-to-wall with them), the museum on your doorstep, and quick access to both termini. It's busy and functional rather than pretty; for leafier or more atmospheric bases, compare Mylapore, T. Nagar or Nungambakkam in our where-to-stay guide, browse the curated hotels, or search availability around the station on Booking.com.