BENGALURU: The wait for commuters looking to use the entire Namma Metro network may be longer that expected with a study predicting that Phase II of the project will be completed only in 2032 or 2033.
The study, which analysed the progress of the project over the past seven years, was carried out by RailYatri.in. It compared the performances of Namma Metro, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and Delhi airport metro project.
“Considering phase-wise completed track length, Bengaluru’s Namma Metro is lagging well behind its Delhi counterparts,” said Kapil Raizada, co-founder, RailYatri.in.
However, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has dismissed the report stating that the comparison between the three metro projects is wrong.
Progress
Delhi Metro achieved a completion rate of 8.06 km per year in Phase I. In the second phase, the pace increased to 15 km per year, ensuring that a total distance of 193 km was covered in two phases.
In comparison, Namma Metro is struggling to complete Phase I (a length of 22.7 km) even eight years after its launch.
One of the reasons for the slow progress, according to RailYatri.in, is that the project’s “learning curve” is relatively flat.
“Namma Metro’s pace over Phase I averages around 2.5 km a year, a slight increase from its Reach I average of 1.5 km a year,” the report states. Considering the current pace, completing 42.3 km of Phase II will require another 16.7 years.
Since, Phase I is scheduled to be completed only in 2016, the study has set the tentative date of completion of Phase II somewhere between 2032 or 2033.
“DMRC’s performance is extremely commendable, and perhaps it is time others just follow the practices they did,” Kapil added.