Green signal for MRTS in Kochi

By Our Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, AUG. 18. The Rail India Technical Economic Services (RITES) has recommended that the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) for Kochi is ``not financially viable but is economically very attractive based on the traffic demand estimation''.

The RITES, a Central Government enterprise which was asked to carry out a study for a transportation system for the Greater Kochi area by the Transport Department, has recommended implementing of the project with necessary financial structuring by way of Government grants, concessions and soft loans.

The final report of the study has been submitted by the RITES group general manager (Urban Infrastructure Development), Mr. V.K. Sibbal, to the Transport Minister, Mr. K.B. Ganesh Kumar. The managing director of the Delhi Metro Railway Corporation, Mr. E. Sreedharan, who is also the adviser to the State Government for the proposed project, was also present.

RITES sources told The Hindu that a detailed project report will have to be prepared for the proposed MRTS detailing the land acquisition and ways to mobilise funds for the project.

The project to be implemented in two phases by 2011, is estimated to cost Rs. 1,625 crores in the first phase itself as per the 1999 prices. The RITES has estimated the economic internal rate of return as 24 per cent and the financial rate of return as 3 per cent with a fare structure of Rs. 7 per trip.

The 23-km corridor from Kalamassery to Thripunithara, proposed by the RITES to be taken up in the first phase of the MRTS project, would give the optimum results. It has suggested the extension of the corridor towards the north up to Aluva. With the seven-km stretch from Aluva to Thripunithara in the last phase, the total project cost has been put at Rs.2,100 crores.

The route alignment recommended will take off from Kalamassery and follow the existing National Highway 47, Edapally Road, Banerjee Road, M.G. Road, D.H. Road, S.A. Road and Thripunithara Road. As many as 20 stations have been proposed with an average inter-station spacing of 1.15 km.

The Transport Department had asked the RITES to prepare the report keeping in view the need for a scientific study to suggest ways to ease the traffic problem by optimising the existing infrastructure and augmenting of the existing network and introduction of the MRTS to cater to the anticipated demand by 2021.

The number of registered motor vehicles has gone up from 68,000 in 1987 to 1.05 lakhs in 1996, registering a decadal growth rate of 76 per cent. The road network development in Greater Kochi has not been commensurate with the growth in traffic.

The growth in number of personalised vehicles has congested the city roads, leading to traffic jams at peak hours. The peak hour traffic demand is expected to vary from 15,000 to 19,000 trips on selected trips in 2005 to 20,000 to 43,000 trips in the year 2001, according to the RITES study.

The Greater Kochi Area including the Goshree Islands Development Authority area with its suburbs extending up to the satellite towns of Angamaly in the North, Thripunithara in the East and Aroor as boundary in the South was the study area of the RITES. The study area has been delineated into 95 traffic zones.

Based on the traffic assignment, introduction of the MRTS has been suggested in two stages. The first has been proposed to be implemented by March 2005 and the second by March 2011.

The proposed metro rail system will be able to run four vehicle trains with each vehicle carrying 375 passengers `under dense crush loading' at three minutes frequency. Initially, the train will have two vehicles which can carry 375 passengers each travelling at intervals of three minutes during peak period. As the traffic grows, the number of vehicle in each train can be increased. The trains are to be monitored at the traffic control centre proposed at the Operations Control Centre, Edapally.

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