KOCHI: Amid the raging debate over two recently announced railway projects in the state, ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan on Friday appeared to add fuel to the fire, questioning the state government’s insistence on a regional rapid transit system (RRTS), terming the move one born out of sheer ignorance or a desire to derail the high-speed railway project. In a statement, Sreedharan, who claims to have been assigned by the Union railway minister to prepare the detailed project report (DPR) for the high-speed railway corridor, said the concept of RRTS was introduced in the New Metro Rail Policy of 2017.
“This regional rail caters to passenger services within a larger urban metropolitan area, connecting the outskirts to the city centre,” he said, adding, “These services – intended to decongest a city – have a greater number of halts over smaller distances.”
In short, it is nothing but a mass rapid transit system (MRTS) and falls under the ministry of housing and urban affairs, his statement highlighted. “RRTS is not an accepted railway system and therefore, cannot be planned and executed under the legal cover of the Railway Act,” Sreedharan said.
KMRL welcomes RRTS
Meanwhile, Loknath Behera, managing director of Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL), welcomed the RRTS proposal and its possible integration with upcoming metro projects in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode.
“While we welcome the suggested integration of RRTS with our metro rail, the DPRs for the Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode projects do not factor in any such move. Therefore, necessary changes should be made,” Behera told TNIE.
Indeed, both Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode were not planned as light metros, and there are a good number of stops planned for each.
Also, both metros are expected to run at a speed of 30kmph, while the RRTS is intended to be faster. “That said, the gauge of both the RRTS and the metro is the same. Therefore, should the need arise, an RRTS and metro can be run together,” Behera highlighted.
KMRL is set to submit DPRs for both projects in March. Necessary revisions, if any, will be made following discussions with the state government, he added.
Chengannur-Pampa rail line hits dead end
Even as uncertainty looms over the two major rail projects, the death knell has been sounded for the 75km-long Chengannur-Pampa alternate alignment.
In a reply to John Brittas in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw said that a survey on the alternate alignment, i.e., Chengannur-Pamba new line, was carried out and found to be not feasible.
The alternate alignment was sought after the Angamaly-Erumeli new line project came to a standstill over land acquisition.
According to Vaishnaw, the Kerala government had been approached several times regarding the Angamaly-Sabarimala railway line.
“Ultimately, due to persistent persuasion, they initiated the land-acquisition process, possibly because of the upcoming elections,” the minister said.