With Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagging off India's first 'Water Metro' project in Kochi, India's plans for an integrated multi-model urban transport system are taking shape.
The Kochi Water Metro will connect 10 islands in and around Kochi with 78 electric boats and 38 modern terminals at a cost ₹1,136.83 crore. The project is also touted as possibly the largest electric boat metro transportation infrastructure being implemented in the world.
The Kochi Water Metro is operated by Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL), a joint venture of the central and state governments. Originally planned to take off in 2018 with an expense of ₹747 crore, the Kochi Water Metro was funded by the German promotional bank KfW, which funds mainly for improving economic, social and environmental living conditions across the globe.
The fully air-conditioned battery operated catamaran boats are of two types, which can carry 50 passengers or 100 passengers and are built by the Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL). PM Modi congratulated CSL for making in India 'unique boats that can be a model for other cities and towns to emulate'. CSL has already handed over nine boats after trials to start services from tomorrow. In the first phase, services will start from the High Court to Vypin terminals and in Vyttila-Kakkanad route, a 15-20 minute journey.
Ticket costs are ₹20 in the High Court to Vypin route and ₹30 in the Vyttila-Kakkanad route. Regular commuters can travel with weekly passes costing ₹180, monthly for ₹600 and quarterly for ₹1,500. With a "Kochi One card', travellers can use seamless bus, water and metro connectivity. KMRL operates electric bus services connecting the airport to metro stations and important hubs in Kochi city.
To ease city traffic, Mumbai is also planning to develop a Water Metro network with six water transport terminals at Nariman Point, Bandra, Juhu, Versova, Marve and Borivali, planned by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, at a cost of ₹750 crore. Goa and Tamilnadu are also planning Water Metro connectivity. Kerala is also developing the West Coast Canal (National Waterway No 3), a 205 kilometre long inland navigational route from Kollam to Kottapuram.
The Prime Minister also today laid foundation stone for a ₹2,000 crore 'Digital Science Park' in Thiruvananthapuram, flagged off Kerala's first Vande Bharat train from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasargod and announced projects worth over ₹2,500 crore for improving railway infrastructure in the state.
