In a freewheeling chat, Loknath Behera, the managing director of Kochi Metro Rail Ltd, revealed the urban transport network’s plans for 2025 and touched upon the prospect of introducing a series of new digital services. Excerpts.
Kochi Metro has achieved operating profit for the second successive year...
I’m more concerned about factors like whether people are using it or not, maintaining the standards, keeping the infrastructure clean, trains running on time, etc. Now more youths are interested in buying tickets digitally. Kochi Metro has the most digital solutions.
The digital penetration in Kerala is the highest in the country as far as common people are concerned, so we’ve to make it even better.
What are the new digital solutions being extended to Metro commuters?
We’re trying to bring in more digital solutions. We’ve joined the ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce). We have to publicise ONDC so that more people use Google Pay and other similar things. People are interested in that, for instance, WhatsApp ticketing. Now they want the ticket to be booked on a pre-travel date. If I want to book a ticket for travel the day after tomorrow, that facility is not there currently.
We also want to replace paper tickets. Nobody goes to a cinema hall to buy a ticket these days. Airlines too have mostly become digital, including the boarding card, tickets, etc. So we would like to do that for Kochi Metro.
So, what are the plans?
We are planning to declare some stations as fully digital, where paper tickets won’t be available. Our AFC (Automatic Fare Collection) gate systems also have to be enhanced for that. Scanning, which is done via QR code, should be foolproof. The fundamental aim is to make these public transport systems - Kochi Metro or Water Metro - reside in the hearts and minds of the people.
The Metro company is merely running it. The Metro is for the people. If they like it, they will come. For that, we’re trying to bring in new services. Our aim is to make Kochi Metro the most preferred public transport system in Kochi and the suburbs.
The ridership has gone up substantially...
Sometime back, when we said we would achieve one-lakh average daily ridership, none believed. We tried our best by taking it up as a challenge. This year, we’re trying whether we can achieve 1.5-lakh average ridership.
A huge challenge with the existing route. But we could achieve that easily with the commissioning of the second phase. I’m sure 70,000-75,000 people will definitely travel, because that’s a very important route. So, on the existing route, what can actually be done, that’s our thinking.
One is digitisation, another is maintaining the standards, and also the soft skills of employees -- whether it’s the cleaning staff, service providers, or the ticketing staff. We’ll give human resource training wherever required, and see that the staff too is tuned to help us increase the ridership.
Currently, the Metro has three wagons. Is there any option to have another?
No, the length of the platform is a disadvantage. Instead, we’ll increase the number of trains to cater to the increase in ridership in future. Now, if you’re operating services at an interval of 7 to 8 minutes during peak hour, you make it three minutes, like the Delhi Metro.
Has the deadline for the second phase been postponed a little?
We said we will complete the work by (the end of) 2025. Even if you finish the infrastructure work, it requires another three months for activities like testing. Our target is to start the operational service by May 2026. But we can only do it if the money from the central and state governments and the loan from AFD (French development agency) flow continuously.
Any plans for Water Metro?
We want to finish the construction of the Ernakulam terminal this year. It’s a very important terminal, near the boat jetty. Tourists and others can travel from there to Mattanchery and Fort Kochi, apart from using the High Court terminal. The modern Mattanchery terminal will also be completed this year. We’re going a little slow when it comes to other stations because we don’t have boats. The boat-making is not in our control.
Have you placed a further order with the shipyard?
We’re in talks for 15 more boats. But they will be available only in 2026.
Is there any plan to extend the Pink Line to Infopark 2?
We haven’t yet done the DPR. But that’s a future plan. We intend to connect Infopark with Tripunithura in the future via Infopark phase 2. Now we’re going to prepare a DPR for phase 3 (Aluva-airport route). If it is done by June, we’ll submit it to the government. If approved, we can immediately take up the project.