Airports

The state of Tamil Nadu has one of the best air networks in the country. Almost all the major cities of the state have their own airports. The four international airports in Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli and Madurai serve the main four regions of the state. The three domestic airports are in Salem, Tuticorin and Puducherry. Besides these seven civilian airports, the state has bases of the Indian Air Force, namely Thanjavur AFS, Tambaram AFS, Coimbatore AFS and two naval air stations INS Rajali and INS Parundu of the Indian Navy.

1. Chennai International Airport

The biggest airport in Tamil Nadu, Chennai International Airport is the aviation hub in South Asia. One of the busiest airports after Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, the Chennai airport has flights to all the major cities in the world.        

2. Coimbatore International Airport

A prominent airport in Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore International Airport is well connected to other cities and towns such as Chennai, Munnar, Bengaluru and Ooty.  Tiruppur, Palakkad, Pollachi and Mettupalayam are all easily accessible from the airport.

3. Tiruchirapalli International Airport

Tiruchirapalli or Trichy International Airport is the smallest airport in India and is situated close to the centre of the city . The airport provides easy access to Namakkal, Karuru, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Ariyalur and Perambalur districts of Tamil Nadu.

4. Madurai International Airport

Located close to the state highway 37 and the Madurai railway station, Madurai International Airport is the fourth busiest airport in Tamil Nadu in terms of passenger handling capacity.

Railways

Part of Southern Railway, Tamil Nadu has a well-developed and well-networked railway system. The headquarters of Southern Railway is in Tamil Nadu. Southern Railway covers the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

The state capital, Chennai, has direct express trains to metro towns in the country. Travellers can find numerous trains to Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kochi. Puratchi Thalaivar Dr M.G. Ramachandran Central Railway Station is the gateway to trains towards the north and Chennai Egmore is the hub of trains towards the south.

The major railway junctions in the state are Chennai, Coimbatore, Katpadi, Madurai, Salem, Erode, Dindigul, Karur, Nagercoil, Tiruchirapalli and Tirunelveli. The state has a total railway track length of 5,952 km (3,698 miles) and there are 532 railway stations in Tamil Nadu.

The Nilgiri Mountain Railway is a UNESCO World Heritage Site connecting Ooty on the hills and Mettupalayam in the foothills. The centenary-old Pamban Bridge over sea connecting Rameswaram in Pamban island to the mainland is an engineering marvel. It is one of the oldest cantilever bridges which are still in operation.

Chennai has a well-established suburban railway network and it is easy to commute between towns through the network. Chennai Metro, that became operational in 2015, is the fourth longest metro system in India and serves the city of Chennai.

Public Transport

In Tamil Nadu, the public transport system meets the transport requirements of around one-fourth of the workforce. The robust public transport covers almost the entire length and breadth of the state.

Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) operates public transport bus service in Tamil Nadu. As the largest government bus transport corporation in India, the TNSTC operates buses along intra and interstate bus routes as well as city routes. There are around eight divisions in TNSTC, including Metropolitan Transport Corporation in Chennai and State Express Transport Corporation.

The State Express Transport Corporation (SETC) runs long-distance express services and links all important cities, tourist destinations, religious places and commercial hubs and bordering states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and the Union Territory of Puducherry. The SETC allows advance booking and operates buses of various classes of services such as semi-deluxe, ultra-deluxe and air-conditioned. Private operators too run a set of buses in different parts of the state, supplementing the SETC.

Taxi

The state of Tamil Nadu has an extensive and advanced road network, connecting urban centres, agricultural-market places and rural areas. It is also part of the Golden Quadrilateral project that connects Indian metropolises like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata.

Like in other metros, taxis are available throughout Tamil Nadu.