Hi FRIENDS,
I WOULD INVITE OUR FORUM MEMBERS TO DISCUSS ISSUES RELATED TO MMTS AND APSRTC:cheers:
I WOULD INVITE OUR FORUM MEMBERS TO DISCUSS ISSUES RELATED TO MMTS AND APSRTC:cheers:
Forget about RTC we are not even sure if we will have AP in future!! thats more sad:bash:
APSRTC lost lot of revenue in the past 20 days. due to non operation of vehicles . so sad
Efforts on to put MMTS phase-II on track
Senior officials of State government and South Central Railway exchanging notes
Updated revised estimate for the MMTS phase-II put at Rs. 1,810 crore
SCR proposes to take up works where cash outgo will be Rs. 919 crore
HYDERABAD: Serious efforts are now on to pep up the popular suburban train service of Multi-Modal Transport System (MMTS).
Senior officials of the government and the South Central Railway (SCR) are exchanging notes on measures to develop rail infrastructure to take up phase two.
In view of the government’s not so rosy financial position, officials seem to have come to a conclusion that the updated revised estimate of Rs. 1,810 crore for the next phase of the project would be a big burden as the former had committed to picking up two-thirds the cost.
Senior railway officials here have instead proposed to take up works where the cash outgo will be Rs. 919 crore only based on operational feasibility and commuter density.
Communication sent
A communication to this effect has been sent to the Chief Secretary’s office couple of months ago listing details of the sections which can be taken up as stage one.
Sanathnagar-Moula Ali chord line (21km – Rs.239 crore), Moula Ali-Malkajgiri-Sitaphalmandi chord line (10 km – Rs. 107.1 crore), Secunderabad-Medchal (28 km-Rs. 171.6 crore), Falaknuma-Umdanagar-International airport (20 km-Rs.233.1 crore) and Moula Ali ‘C’ Cabin-Cherlapalli (5 km-Rs. 50 crore) are among the works proposed under the plan.
Besides, another Rs.66 crore cost has been estimated for rolling stock like six rakes or trains and Rs. 52 crore as general charges. SCR has explained that these works will provide an uninterrupted flow of MMTS commuter traffic and will also help in decongesting the main line corridors around the twin cities.
Survey
Senior railway officials, who are surveying each and every inch of the railway lines proposed to be developed to consider whether costs could be cut down further, have sought the government’s consent to start works at the earliest. In the meantime, the government was sounded about releasing the Rs. 15 crore due to the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai.
The money is for procuring six pending trains of nine coaches each to augment phase one services so that the daily trips can be increased to 100 or more from the present 92 services.
However, even if the money is released immediately, rakes manufacture will take nearly a year since the factory is busy with making coaches for the Kolkata metro, senior officials indicated.
The much-hyped Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) from Rethibowli to JNTU Kukatpally is in doldrums with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) unable to raise funds for the proposed project. As a result, the corporation has put formation of the special purpose vehicle (SPV) for BRTS on hold.
The 18-km stretch, one of the busiest routes in the city, from Rethibowli-Hi-Tec City-JNTU at Kukatpally was chosen for BRTS as there is scope for widening and development of the road.
The Unified Metropolitan Traffic Authority (UMTA) had last year decided to tap about Rs 180 crore under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) to take up BRTS. However, the Union government kept the project pending as Andhra Pradesh had utilised Rs 2,475 crore more than the allocated funds. Another 38 projects, worth about Rs 3,392 crore, are still pending with the government.
With no signs of fresh sanctions to the state, the UMTA and GHMC are planning to take a soft loan from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has already taken loan for the Outer Ring Road (ORR) phase II and the Hussainsagar cleaning programme.
The state government is under pressure to take up the project as it assured the Bhure Lal Committee on Action Plan for Improvement of Air Quality in Hyderabad. The GHMC assured the committee at the recently held meeting that SPV for BRTS would be formed as soon as possible.
"The proposals for formation of SPV are being prepared and sent to the state government for approval. The GHMC commissioner will be chairman of the SPV and one of the executive directors of APSRTC will act as managing director of the proposed SPV," a senior GHMC official told TOI.
Officials see no purpose in forming an SPV unless the state government gets funds for BRTS. BRTS for the city was proposed three years ago. Feasibility studies were conducted on major routes like Uppal-Mehdipatnam, Uppal-Aramghar and other areas. Finally, it was decided to have BRTS on Rethibowli-Kukatpally stretch.
Last year, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) had completed a feasibility study and submitted a report, including environmental and social assessment study and preliminary designs.
It was decided that while GHMC would provide infrastructure facilities for BRTS like road widening, APSRTC would provide buses and operate them on the this route.
SCR launches Mathrubhoomi
HYDERABAD: Women passengers plying in MMTS trains can now enjoy hassle-free journey as South Central Railway (SCR) on Monday launched the much-awaited Mathrubhoomi ladies special on Falaknuma-Lingampally route.
Everyday over 40,000 women passengers commute in MMTS trains across different destinations in twin cities. Two exclusive ladies special services would be operated on the Falaknuma-Lingampally route and they would be guarded by lady security personnel and ticket checking staff will also be ladies.
Besides, Mathrubhoomi ladies special trains, SCR has also launched Hyderabad-Ajmer bi-weekly express, Kacheguda-Mahabubnagar, Kacheguda- Miryalguda Diesel Electrical Multiple Unit (DEMU) passenger trains.
Chief Minister K. Rosaiah flagged off these trains at Kacheguda Railway station in the presence of Minister of State for Railways K.H. Muniyappa.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister said Hyderabad-Ajmer express was a special train as it connects pilgrims from different religions. The State and Central governments should work in coordination and come up with such services, which aid in passengers' convenience, he said.
Facilities
South Central Railway General Manager M.S. Jayanth said passenger amenities, including extension of platform shelters, Online train tracking system, better illumination would be taken up at all the MMTS station in twin cities with a cost of Rs.6 crore.
Mr. Jayanth further informed Kacheguda railway station would be developed by installation of escalators, second entry from the Amberpet side and construction of new waiting halls at the station. All these works would be taken up with a cost of Rs. 22 crore and would be completed in a year's time, he added.
The MMTS Travellers Group appreciated the inauguration of Mathrubhoomi (ladies special) MMTS service.
Describing it as a milestone on the history of MMTS, the group said this would be of great help to women passengers, in a press release issued here on Monday.
They also requested the government to cooperate with South Central Railway and augment MMTS services and also release funding necessary for commencement of phase-II works.