Inter-modal link facilities vital

By Akila Dinakar

CHENNAI, OCT. 29. While the second phase of the Mass Rapid Transit System is getting ready for completion by mid next year, officials and transport experts alike feel that not much of planning is being done to create inter-modal link facilities between the MRTS and the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC).

Though the idea of common ticketing for inter-modal use of both forms of transport by the public still remains

far-fetched in the minds of officials, many commuters feel that discussions should begin at the planning stage itself on how the services can be linked to serve the public better and ensure optimum utilisation of both modes of transport.

A preliminary study proposed by the MTC on intake of commuters by the MRTS, suburban train and MTC routes has found that between Parrys-Tambaram sector the commuters using MTC has increased by 4.5 per cent during the last six months.

When public were asked for their preference to MTC over MRTS or the suburban trains, they said that the bus dropped them at the doorstep and took them to interior areas. The reason given by the public for choosing MTC was that by train, they had to walk a long distance to reach their required destination or for boarding a bus which took them there. They preferred to take a bus to cover the distance instead, an official said.

While the MTC has discovered that there is very less intake in the 15 buses parked at the open depot in Chintadripet MRTS Station except during the peak hours, officials said that near Ice House, commuters found it difficult to walk past the mess as the area was being used as a public convenience and they felt security threat at night. At the Thirumailai Station, while buses could get into the depot, they did not have the manoeuvering space to come out.

Pointing out that the two implementing agencies needed to be brought under a uniform umbrella, Mr. Swaran Singh, Managing Director, MTC said that once the railway stops were fixed, the approaches to the bus stops should be made easy for pedestrians and the physically handicapped. "There should be a forward and backward linking of bus stops to enable people to board buses on both sides of railway stations", he said.

Mr. Rajiv Rajan of Vidya Sagar who did a disability audit of the MRTS found that it was "not at all accessible for people in the wheel chair", expressing surprise that even such a mega-project in which crores of rupees was invested there was a total lack of awareness. As a suggestion he said that at least one compartment in the end or beginning of the train should be made disabled- friendly with provision for hydraulic lifts and access ramps at the stations with similar facilities in MTC buses too.

Calling for building the right kind of access infrastructure for better use of both modes of transport, Mr. Swaran Singh said that as a first measure there was a need for a more integrated approach between the two implementing agencies. This can include representatives from the public who will be able to put forth the problems of users in the right perspective.

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Section  : Southern States
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