Comments on No Man's Land?: Turning the void page

DMRC, under Sreedharan with an outstanding upright...

2009-01-20T15:26:00.000Z

DMRC, under Sreedharan with an outstanding uprightness, has given the feasibility report for Kochi Metro. He is not some one who signs where the boss points.

Metro initially proposed as BOT project
has already shortlisted private players
back in 2007 among bidders. It includes established players in the field including Bombardier corporation.

It is again on the advice of DMRC that state govt insisted on Public funded model.

The grouse of one odd author with DMRC is summarized by the following
news. Such seems to be his unabashed display of dishonesty driven by parochial jealousy.

Metro, LRTS not feasible for Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram: Improvement in existing road network and road intersections has been mooted instead of metro railway and rail-based Light Rail Transit System (LRTS) to ease the traffic congestion and address the inadequacies of the public transport infrastructure in the capital.

This was suggested in the feasibility study for ``Exploring the need for rail-based Mass Rapid Transit System for Thiruvananthapuram city and suburbs" carried out by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) last year at the instance of the State Government.

The peak hour peak direction trips (PHPDT) varies from 3,080 to 7,231 in the year 2030, according to the report submitted to Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan on August 23. Since this level of PHPDT can be easily handled with bus traffic, metro services cannot be justified for the capital.

The PHPDT values for 10 important corridorswere calculated for years 2010, 2020 and 2030 as part of the traffic demand forecast.

Even for 2030, the PHPDT value on an average on the corridors is only about 6,000. Buses operating with mixed other traffic can carry about 6,000 PHPDT. This capacity can be increased to 20,000 PHPDT by taking steps like setting up dedicated bus lanes. Beyond the demand level of 20,000 PHPDT, the report says rail-based mass urban rail transit becomes necessary.

LRTS, if provided, will be an unviable system and will be an unnecessary financial burden on the city.
The Hindu Full Story

Ajay wrote "Scorpio, I often wonder why this Metro...

2009-01-19T08:06:00.000Z

Ajay wrote "Scorpio, I often wonder why this Metro Rail proposal is even included among the list of serious proposals. It is not rocket-science that a city must evolve its transportation system in line with its size and requirements. Metro-rail or heavy-rail MRTS is required for cities with a population of atleast 4 million and above."

Ajay, you seem to be an avid reader of GoK publications from where you probably come up with statements like "U/A with no more than 1.5 million".

Remember, Big is not beautiful. Neither is it bigger. Kochi does not end with the MC of Cochin. Look around, the commercial and urban spaces stretch in all directions, in some cases even 30-40 kms. Kochi is surrounded by no less than 6 municipalities. On paper, they maybe separate. But, they are all referred to as outgrowths or extensions of Kochi. So, that makes the population around 2 million plus the lakhs that make up the floating population. They make the city bustle and keeps her awake, all day and night.

IMPORTANT
===========
It is good to have infrastructure for the future. Many cities like Bangalore crumbled and were brought down to the knees coz they didnt do anything about the infrastructure. It is good that there is someone out there with a vision. The metro rail is inevitable in future and looking at the way projects in Kerala take centuries to complete, it is good to start working on one right away.

So, by the time the Metro is up and running, Kochi would have reached a population that meets the Dr. Sreedharan standard of qualification...

Kochi is certainly not a 9-5 city like the capital...

2009-01-15T07:54:00.000Z

Kochi is certainly not a 9-5 city like the capital city. It is the mumbai of kerala and bustling till late into the night. I fully agree with Remya, this is a city where you find women late shopping. this is a city where people do not stay home on a holiday, instead u find them out on the street. this is a city which does not bend its knees to a hartal cry. this is a city which does not sleep cos it s a govt holiday. this is a city where every area within miles is packed with commercial enterprises and hence people on the move. this is a city where you will find different cultures out on the road. this is a city where western tourists have things to do within the city too. this and much much more...

a metro is inevitable even though the private buses are fast and efficient.

Ajay, u're not very popular for ur anti-kochi sent...

2009-01-07T11:05:00.000Z

Ajay, u're not very popular for ur anti-kochi sentiments. thought u were only worried about trivandrum? i would think this "concern" that you exhibit is not genuine...you know what we are talking about very well, don't you '_'

well..its tough to cling on to hope these days...o...

2009-01-07T10:54:00.000Z

well..its tough to cling on to hope these days...only can wish better sense prevail among adminstrators in 2009..

@Ajaypp

On paper, Kochi might not need a M...

2009-01-06T08:27:00.000Z

@Ajaypp

On paper, Kochi might not need a Metro. On paper, Kochi may be just 1.5 million. But, Kochi was always known for the floating population which surely increases the population by a large margin. Kochi is a trade and commerce city and not where people spend their day in offices 9-5. People are on the move.
That makes the difference. Even us independent women have so much to do just like in Metros. In Kochi, you would find women like me shopping at 1030 PM coz my local bakery is still open.
Even on Sundays, the traffic blocks are like those of a working day.

This is not purely coz of poor infrastructure, rather it is all about a place where there are lots of things to do. A metro would be great considering that Kochi is surrounded by some of the busiest muncipalities in Kerala. Kochi UA is huge and very very busy.

Lets look at the ground reality rather than going by published numbers.

@ Praveen, this 'hope' is the only thing left in u...

2009-01-02T19:59:00.000Z

@ Praveen, this 'hope' is the only thing left in us, everytime.. :)

@ Ajay, Cochin badly needs a road development initiative, but you have a few points against the Metro. But since it is a hi-profile project for the state and we've taken a few steps forward with it, I gave it a go. May be a monorail or a light rail system is more suitable.

Scorpio, I often wonder why this Metro Rail propos...

2009-01-01T18:04:00.000Z

Scorpio, I often wonder why this Metro Rail proposal is even included among the list of serious proposals. It is not rocket-science that a city must evolve its transportation system in line with its size and requirements. Metro-rail or heavy-rail MRTS is required for cities with a population of atleast 4 million and above. So say the experts including the famous DMRC chairman, Dr. Sreedharan. It is hard to see that no one is even questioning why a city whose U/A accounts for no more than 1.5 million people needs such a system, especially when the likes of Ahmedabad, Pune, Lucknow and Indore, all of which are atleast thrice as big, have not asked for it. If one tries to migrate directly from bullock-carts to aeroplanes, there is a serious chance of falling flat on the way. QED.

Instead of going around the block asking for grants to make up the whopping Rs 4000 Crore price-tag for this grandiose scheme, if someone had the smarts to go in for road improvements and a public transport system such as BRTS, with a price-tag of about 10% of the former, things may already have improved on the streets of Cochin.

This is not to detract in any sense from the requirement to improve public transport in Cochin (I spend a few hours of each week stuck in the city's traffic jams) but to call for good sense and quick action.

Its sad that year after year its the same story in...

2008-12-30T17:48:00.000Z

Its sad that year after year its the same story in kerala..a sad story of developmental projects stopped midway by some political or regional interventions...I really wonder when will the time come when we'll be speaking about the things achieved in an year...
hope something happens in the unwelcome year of 2009