DPR work of Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram light metro begins

Union govt’s approval is awaited, KMRL MD Loknath Behera says report will be ready in 8-10 months if everything goes as per plans
DPR work of  Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram light metro begins

KOCHI: The Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL), buoyed by the state government nod to execute the light metro in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode, has begun the preparatory work for detailed project reports (DPR). While the Union government’s approval is awaited, KMRL Managing Director Loknath Behera told reporters on Friday that the DPR will be ready in eight to ten months, if everything goes as planned.
“The agencies authorised by the ministry of housing and urban affairs, in consultation with the KMRL team of experts, will be completing the DPR,” Behera said.

KMRL will prepare a comprehensive mobility plan for the cities, he said. “An alternate traffic analysis also has to be done.

A final decision on the ideal metro system for a city will be made later. We will be giving options depending on the analysis. It will mostly depend on footfall,” he said. If high footfall is projected, the conventional metro could be suggested, he pointed out.

Earlier, KMRL had done a preliminary study on the metro transport system viable in Kozhikode and Thiruvanathapuram. A 26km stretch in Kozhikode and a 39km stretch in Thiruvananthapuram were identified for the purpose.

“The plan is not final. We had planned the metro stretch initially with a loop structure in place so that it would be convenient for the public,” Behera said. Metroman E Sreedharan had earlier suggested the light metro project for the two cities. But he later announced that the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation was withdrawing from the projects due to the government’s apathetic attitude.

METRO PROJECTS IN CITY
The Kochi Water Metro service is expected to be operational by October 1. According to Behera, the test run along the identified routes — including Vypeen-High Court stretch — is progressing. “We are yet to receive the final boat, and if there is no major technical issues with it, we will start the services soon,” he said. Meanwhile, the second phase of the Kochi Metro — the Palarivattom-Kakkanad stretch — is yet to get approval from the union government.

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