Mass transit systems have undoubtedly been one of the most preferred ways of public transport keeping in mind the huge environmental impact it creates while being extremely cost efficient to commuters.
And in populous countries like India mass transit systems have often been lionized to be a realistic solution for negating congestion.
‘Metro rail systems have been game changers wherever they have come up. They are often credited with spurring economic growth in that region.
GDP growth of that region has multiplied and this has been proven in various studies in the west’ said Mr UJM Rao, Managing director, Andhra Pradesh metro rail corporation speaking exclusively to Vizag Industrial Scan.
There are said to be 570 places across the world where metro rail has been deployed while there are 60 metro rail projects in 28 cities across India.
Among one of those places where metro rail is slated to come up is in the city of destiny, Visakhapatnam.
And the man tasked to get this on track is an all India services 1988 batch IRAS officer, Mr UJM Rao. A veteran in mass transit Mr Rao has rich experience having worked in various top managerial positions for over 40 years in railways and metro transit.
In fact he has been the recipient of 12 prestigious leadership and management awards at the highest level.
Albeit armed with impressive credentials Mr Rao undoubtedly has a herculean task ahead of getting this rail line cleared.
Albeit he is off to a good start as the state government of Andhra Pradesh recently approved the report/DPR of light metro for Vizag city which was prepared by UMTC.
Urban Mass Transit Company Limited is an urban transport consultancy company to develop sustainable urban mobility methods and solutions. It focuses on planning, designing, project management and implementation supervision of urban transportation projects.
‘Light rail metro typically starts becoming a necessity for cities that have a population of more than 20 lakhs.
Vizag is estimated to have a population of 36 lakhs i.e. 25 lakhs in the city and around 11 lakhs in the suburbs’ informed Mr Rao.
With a total length of 76.90 kms Vizag’s metro rail will pass from Steel plant to Kommadi junction, Gurudwara to old post office, Tadichetlapalem to Chinna waltair, Kommadi to Bhogapuram(see table).
Once up and running this metro rail might well be the perfect solution for the city’s growing traffic nightmares.
Take the case of Delhi metro though a tad different from LRT as it is defined as heavy metro(preferable for cities having population above 50 lakhs) it nonetheless has a capacity to carry 265 people in each car and with 3 cars attached it carries 795 people in one go.
‘This is equivalent to running 16 busses’ pointed Mr Rao.
The Vizag light metro rail however is proposing to have a 2 car system with a slightly lesser single car capacity of 225 passengers and 450 for 2 cars per train with a frequency of 8 minutes.
This can be further enhanced in the future depending on the demand and requirement. In addition the time saved by travelling on these systems is very attractive.
‘One can easily notice at least 55% reduction in their commuting time riding on LRT’ said Mr Rao.
Zooming Costs
Although no one disputes the benefits of mass transit systems like light rail metro one cannot also disregard the costs associated with it.
As per estimates it will cost a mind boggling Rs 200 crs per km to implement light rail metro in the city and with a total length of 76.90 kms the final number turns out to be astronomical.
Mr Rao however clarifies that this costs include the cost of metro cars, station cost, depots, signalling system etc.
Regardless Mr Rao opines Light rail metro to be the best possible bet for Vizag.
‘In the long run LRT is way more economical compared to BRT even though capex initially is high while opex is far less.
LRT’s operation and maintenance expense is by far less compared to some of the other mass transit systems like BRTS’ said Mr Rao.
