Introduction of Indian Metro Railway

• India’s 1^st and Asia’s 5^th metro rail was introduced in Kolkata.
• Over a length of 16.45km and the work on this project was sanctioned on 01/06/1972.
• The construction work started in 1973-74. After crossing so many hurdles Calcutta Metro started its journey on October24, 1984.

Why is it needed?

• Unprecedented growth of personal vehicles.
• Growing traffic congestion.
• Air pollution and traffic accidents has become a major concern.
• To avoid congestion at peak hours.
• Time saving. Reduced fuel consumption.

City Metro Rail

• Lack of adequate connectivity are becoming increasingly eminent.
• Delhi has taken the exemplary lead of developing the Metro Rail.
• India is well on its way to create a world-class MRT system as an integral part of community infrastructure development in the country.
• Shift from private modes of conveyance to public transport.

India is looking to create a world class MRT system

• Growing cities, growing population and rowing traffic has invariably called for a shift from private modes of conveyance to public transport.
• MRTS in the world’s developing nations exist successfully.
• India has lagged behind in this field but the reason could be as follows:-

1. Lack of funds planning as is known that such projects require huge capital investments.
2. A long gestation period.
3. Complex technology.
4. The lack of integration between various systems of mass transportation.
5. The absence of comprehensive traffic and transportation planning.

Cost Factors

• Metro projects are meant to cater to cities with more than four million population.
• Larger the underground and elevated proposal, larger shall be the cost involved.
• Funding process is done through the PPP model (Public-Private-Partnership) as in Hyderabad and Mumbai or by DMRC model by the state or the central government as in Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata.
• Correct process is the PPP model.

Benefits of Metro Rail

• Requires 1/5^th energy per passenger km compared to road-based transport system.
• Causes less noise, no air pollution and eco friendly transport system.
• Occupies o road space if underground and only about 2.60m width of the road if elevated.
• Reduces journey time.
• Cost effective mass transport system.
• Reducing traffic transport problems.

Advantages

• A cheap mode of transport, the MRTS helps in low energy consumption.
• It is eco-friendly (runs on electricity, thus minimizing air and sound pollution).
• Averts the number of accidents.
• Is efficient in terms of space occupancy and provides comfort with ultra-modern coaches and modern systems like automatic ticketing, advanced signaling systems, automatic train protection system and integrated security systems.
• Also such stations lead to nearby economic development.
• With proper designing, the peak hour capacity could be rated at 3-4 lakhs passengers per hour.”

Disadvantages

• The only disadvantage of metros is the slight congestion on roads at the time of construction which has to be taken care of.
• The cost factor is another disadvantage, the solution for which is to integrate metros with others systems considering the volume, structure, availability of space and resources for traffic and transportation.