Assessing urban traffic congestion for sustainable transportation in Chennai, India: a case study of Kathipara and T. Nagar intersections

Urban congestion significantly impairs economic output, energy efficiency, and mobility in India’s fast-expanding cities. This study focuses on Panagal Park, T. Nagar, an at-grade commercial crossroads, and Kathipara Junction, a grade-separated interchange, in order to build a quantitative, intersection-specific approach for diagnosing and controlling congestion in Chennai. LOS E–F situations with Degree of Saturation (DoS) values between 1.32 and 1.45, indicating near or complete flow breakdown, are shown by the findings of delay-based Level of Service (LOS) analysis, traffic-volume counts at 15-min intervals, and video-derived journey durations. There was a cumulative delay of 12,708 vehicle minutes (212 vehicle hours) with operating speeds as low as 1.5 km/h due to peak-hour traffic, which reached 10,230 vehicles per hour at Kathipara and 8,960 vehicles per hour at Panagal Park. Beyond descriptive evaluation, the study presents a decision-oriented congestion assessment model that translates LOS–DoS outcomes into measurable performance indicators for prioritizing intersection upgrades. The study offers planners and policymakers a reproducible method to statistically benchmark intersection efficiency by tying empirical delay data to adaptive signal optimization, congestion-pricing viability, and multimodal corridor management. The framework combines data-driven design principles with field-based performance measures to create one of the first intersection-level models for sustainable mobility planning in Indian megacities. This is a big step forward for both research and practice.