Formerly known as Madras, Chennai is the capital of the southern state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 6th most populous city in India with a population of more than 64 lakh people as of 2023. It is a very suitable residential city and is now also growing towards an industrially strong region.

Chennai has well-maintained road, rail and air networks that connects it with the rest of the country. There are 20 RTO offices in Chennai that look after the transportation management of areas that fall under their jurisdiction.

Users who wish to visit the official website of the Chennai RTO can click on the following link. The link will redirect the users to the website of Chennai RTO.

Chennai RTO website: https://tnsta.gov.in/tnsta/homepage

The various functions of the RTO Offices in Chennai include:

• Ensure the enforcement of all the rules and regulations under the Motor Vehicles Act 1988

• Conducting driving tests.

• Issuing driver's licence, learner's licence, International Driving Permit and duplicate driving licence.

• Providing services like renewing driving licences and issuing duplicate driving licences.

• Conducting vehicle fitness checks and issuing vehicle fitness certificates.

• Issuing Vehicle Registration Certificates or RCs for different vehicles.

• Proving services like rectifying addresses in vehicle registration certificates.

• Issuing No Objection Certificates or NOCs for transfer of vehicle registrations.

• Availing vehicle ownership transfer.

• Issuing vehicle permits.

• Levying and collecting road taxes and penalties.

• Issuing PUC certificates and keeping a check on emission levels of vehicles.

Different types of driving licence issued under RTO Chennai are mentioned below:

• Permanent Licence

• Learners Licence

• International Driving Licence

• Commercial Driving Licence

The different types of vehicle registrations offered under RTO Chennai are:

• Permanent Registration

• Temporary Registration

After successfully completing the registration process, a registration number will be provided to you.It is mandatory for you to display the number on the front and rear side of your vehicle.

The different types of number plates issued by the Chennai RTO are as follows: 

• Red Number Plate

• Blue Number Plate

• Yellow Number Plate 

• White Number Plate

• Green Number Plate

• Black Number Plate 

• Red Number Plate with the Indian Emblem

• Number Plate with an arrow pointing upwards

Charges for vehicle registration under RTO Chennai are as follows:

• Charges for registration: ₹600 for all the vehicles

• Charges for hypothecation: ₹1500 for vehicles purchased on loan; else not applicable

• Charges for issuing number plates: ₹230 to ₹400; charges are the same for High-Security Registration Plates or HSRP number plates 

• Charges for temporary registration: ₹1200 to ₹1500; temporary registration of vehicles is valid only for a month

The road tax charges in Chennai follows the same structure of Tamil Nadu road tax, which are mentioned below:

• Charges for two-wheelers: 5% to 7.75% of vehicle price(depending on the age of vehicle since its registration)

• Charges for four-wheelers up to ₹10 Lakhs: 6% to 8.75% of vehicle price(depending on the age of vehicle since its registration)

• Charges for four-wheelers above ₹10 Lakhs: 11% to 13.75% of vehicle price( depending on the age of vehicle since its registration)

• Charges for Commercial Vehicles: ₹600 to ₹2300 quarterly(depending on the weight of the vehicle)

Vehicles carrying more than 15000 kg are liable to pay an additional amount of ₹50 for every extra 250 kg. 

Not abiding by the traffic rules will make vehicle drivers subject to pay traffic fines in Chennai. Charges for breaking the different traffic rules are as follows:

• Charges for driving a two-wheeler without a helmet: ₹1000 along with 3 months of licence suspension

• Charges for driving with a cancelled driving licence: ₹5000 

• Charges for driving without carrying a valid registration certificate: ₹5000 

• Charges for drinking and driving: ₹10000 along with probable 6 months of imprisonment for a first-time offence, ₹15000 along with probable 2 years of imprisonment for a repeated offence

• Charges for driving over the speed limit: ₹1000 to ₹2000 for Light Motor Vehicles; ₹2000 to ₹4000 for Heavy Motor Vehicles along with the probability of licence seizure 

Yes, it is mandatory to have vehicle insurance while driving in Chennai. Not having active vehicle insurance will make the vehicle owners subject to penalties. 

The penalty for driving without active insurance is ₹2000. 

According to reports, traffic diversion routes were announced around the Marina Bay region on the eve of Pongal. There were more than 15000 traffic personnel deployed along with 11 helpline booths, and temporary mini-control rooms. Furthermore, ambulance services and fire extinguishers were also kept on standby for emergencies. 

Traffic routes were diverted in Chennai for the arrival of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As per reports, the Prime Minister visited Chennai for the inauguration of the new terminal at the Chennai airport, to flag off the Vande Bharata Express and to attend an event at Vivekananda Illam. The traffic routes were diverged as per the Prime Minister’s movement across the city. 

In 2021, the Chennai transport department introduced faceless services with e-sign facilities as well as biometrics-based authentication. Introduction of this feature was to allow people the ease to avail the services of the RTO from their homes. The faceless services provided by RTO Chennai are as follows: 

• Transferring ownership

• Issuing No Objection Certificates or NOCs

• Issuing duplicate registration certificate

• Adding hypothecation

• Continuing hypothecation

• Changing of address in registration certificates

• Terminating hypothecation 

• Registration certificate particulars

• Retention of registration number 

• Renewing permits

• Transferring permits

• Issuing fresh permits

• Issuing duplicate permits

• Surrendering permits

• Transferring permits in case of death

• Renewing home authorization 

A road safety campaign was organised by Rapido Auto in collaboration with the Greater Chennai City Police. This campaign was held at 2 major signals in the city: the Mylapore Luz Corner Signal and the Lighthouse Signal in Santhome High Road. 

As per reports, 25 Rapido Auto Captains were given cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training to allow them to provide medical assistance to people during emergencies on the road. These 25 Rapido Captains were also awarded certificates by the police department.