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#1 ·
#103 ·
MMRDA itching to get started on Eastern Waterways project

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority will invite tenders soon for the Eastern Waterways project, waiting only for the cabinet to communicate officially that it is in charge of the project, formerly with the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation that has failed to attract private parties.

The project has a budgetary provision of Rs 100 crore. The modalities were discussed at a “war room” meeting on Monday and the MMRDA expects cabinet approval in a week, a Mantralaya official said.

The MMRDA has proposed two water transport services on the eastern waterfront - the first between Ferry Wharf and Vashi, Neral and Belapur and the second one a roll-on, roll-off (RoRo) ferry service to carry both people and vehicles between Ferry Wharf and Mandva Jetty near Alibaug.

The passenger service would supplement the saturated suburban railway system on the eastern side of the city. The government has a long-drawn plan to start similar services on the western waterfront, too, but it has not moved for many years.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/mmrda-itching-to-get-started-on-eastern-waterways-project/612126/
 
#104 ·
COASTAL CONNECT: HOPE STILL FLOATS

Bogged down by uncertainty

Monsoon, Shallow Seas Made Waterway Projects Unattractive For Bidders In Past

Chittaranjan Tembhekar | TNN


Mumbai: An exasperated Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan, upset over the delay in implementing infrastructure projects in the city, on Monday remarked that he has been hearing about Mumbai’s waterway proposals since his college days. Chavan studied science and management from 1972-77, and it was around that time that unsuccessful attempts to start inter- and intracity water transport projects started in the Mumbai region.
In 1972-73, Cidco started a ‘hover marine’ service between Ferry Wharf and Vashi which lasted just a few days. In 1976-77, the MMRDA proposed a service with a jetty in Thane creek, but the plan never took off. Chavan’s father, the late S B Chavan, was chief minister from 1975-77 and must have witnessed these early bumbling attempts at getting a waterway going.
Since then, at least five different studies have either shot down or given the thumbs-up for waterways on the east and west coasts of the city, but nothing much has happened to date.
While the east coast has always got a green signal from consultants, the west coast waterway was initially shot down due to shallow seas near the coast, which would require jetties to extend into the sea. Also, the four months of monsoon made the projects financially unviable and pending environmental clearances also dampened bidders’ interest.
Tenders floated early on by the Mumbai Maritime Board and Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) failed to attract bids. But environmental clearances in the late 1990s paved the way for bidding.
The turning point for both waterways came in 2007 when a Comprehensive Transportation Study (CTS) for the entire metropolitan region—covering rail, road and sea—said that the waterways were not only feasible, but necessary for a city that is increasingly seeing its residents live in far-flung suburbs or in neighbouring towns. The study, commissioned by MMRDA, also said that commuters were interested in waterways, especially on the west coast.
However, owing to legal complications, the state cancelled the contract given to Satyagiri Shipping in 2008.
In the CTS, over 2 lakh commuters in the western suburbs favoured water transport over road and rail. On the western seafront, the total daily passenger use, estimated for the base year 2005 and horizon year 2031, was 97,000 and 1.39 lakh, respectively, for catamarans and 89,000 and 1.27 lakh for hovercrafts.
“These bidders have requested relaxed conditions. We are considering the options to make it financially attractive,’’ said an MSRDC source. Transport expert Ashok Datar said, “I agree that shallow water and the monsoon are problems for the financial and technical feasibility aspects. But the state must devise a financial model taking into account these problems to create interest among bidders.’’ He added that waterways cause less pollution than road traffic.
Interestingly, there seemed to be poor interest from passengers from areas like Navi Mumbai, Thane and the island city, according to the CTS. The total daily usage estimated for the base year 2006 and horizon year 2031 was 6,653 and 10,391 passengers, respectively, for catamarans and 5,895 and 10,068 for hovercrafts.

WEST COAST PROJECT GATHERS STEAM
MSRDC has invited bids, for which May 30 is the deadline. Winning bidder will get two years to start the service
Entire project is expected to cost around Rs 1,200 crore
Deadlines for bids have been extended thrice, but that has been blamed on the past financial slowdown. Currently, around 22 private companies have bought tender forms
The stations would be at Nariman Point, Bandra, Juhu, Versova, Marve and Borivali. Charkop would have a maintenance and repair station
The catamaran or hovercrafts should accommodate up to 300 passengers and travel at speeds higher than 30 knots. But initially, seven to eight hovercrafts with a 100-passenger capacity would be commissioned
Vessels would travel every 10 to 15 minutes during peak hours and at 30-minute intervals at other times
Hovercrafts should cover the Borivili-Nariman Point distance in 50 minutes and follow pollution norms
Services have to run for a minimum of 300 days in a calendar year
Facilities to be provided include terminal buildings, waiting halls, cafeterias, restaurants, book stalls, fire fighting and safety wings, navigational aids, communication system
The winning bidder will get 30 years to recover the investment and earn profits. After that, MSRDC will operate the waterway

BACK TO DRAWING BOARD FOR EAST
On the eastern seafront, the MSRDC recently pulled out and the MMRDA is now drawing up plans for a tender
The contractor would have to run catamarans or hovercrafts from Ferry Wharf in Mumbai to Belapur, Vashi, Nerul and Mandva on the mainland. Later, there would also be services to JNPT and Uran
Each craft would be able to carry 150 to 300 passengers. It is not known if the services can be run during the monsoon
MMRDA also plans roll-on and roll-off services that would allow commuters to load cars on boats and take them to Mandwa
The MMRDA has allocated Rs 100 crore for the overall project in the 2010-11 budget. MMRDA will develop passenger terminals at Vashi, Nerul, Belapur, Mandwa and Ferry Wharf, and subsequently in JNPT and Uran
A tender will be issued inviting bidders, but ticketing would be controlled by the state government, said MMRDA officers

38 YEARS OF SAILING NOWHERE
In 1972-73, Cidco started Mumbai’s first waterway project with a ‘hover marine’ service on the east side, between Ferry Wharf and Vashi. It lasted just a few days In 1976-77, MMRDA planned an inland transport service with a port and jetty in Thane creek. The plan didn’t take off The Vice Admiral N P Dutta committee reported in 1982 that the project was not feasible for the west coast (especially during the monsoon), because of shallow waters near the coastline. Jetties would have to be built in the sea The same committee reported that the project was possible on the east side, between Ferry Wharf and Vashi, Gateway of India and Uran, and Colaba and Navi Mumbai Between 1980 and 1985, private boat and catamaran operators started services between Ferry Wharf and Vashi, and Gateway of India and Belapur. They lasted for about a decade From 1988 to 1990, a joint venture of private companies started hovercraft operations from Juhu to Belapur via Nariman Point, but stopped due to financial problems Between 1988 and 1990, Cidco’s Kirloskar Consultants and W S Atkins, the consultants for a transport study for the Mumbai region, recommended fast ferry services to Navi Mumbai In 1992, the east and west coast projects were transferred from the Mumbai Maritime Board to MSRDC In 1994-95, the MSRDC’s consultants said that both east and west coast projects were possible. However, there was insufficient response to two tenders In the late 1990s, environment clearances were got for jetties on the east and west coasts A comprehensive transport study, done from 2005-07 and commissioned by the MMRDA for the metropolitan region, said both waterways were feasible and needed In 2008, a contract awarded to Satyagiri Shipping for west coast transport was cancelled by the state after legal controversies and consortium issues In 2009, MSRDC issued another tender inviting bids for the west coast project. The deadline is May 30, 2010 In February 2010, MSRDC abandoned plans to run a service between Colaba and Nerul due to non-availability of land. The MMRDA is now planning ferry services for the east side





source : Times of India
 
#106 ·
Even though massive investment on the roads, if there is no strict rules and it's implementation mumbai traffic will be chaos.

Mumbai traffic police should pop in and should take some serious actions now.
There might be thousand of rules, who cares unless until it's implemented on the ground.

Here is what I observed

1. Express highway, Freeways are meant for fast movement of traffic. The roads are also well meant, but what the auto rickshaws are doing there. Auto rickshaws in this road should be banned completely.
2.The left most lane in the express highways will be dedicated for 2 wheelers. four wheelers in the left most lane should be banned unless one is taking left exit.
3. No parking on the expressways and it's exits unless it's urgent with flashing lights on the cars.
4. There should be special traffic police team who will monitor the speedy ways traffic
5. At all the traffic signals stop lines before the pedestrian pass and vehicles must stop before the stop line when traffic signal is red. Cross of this line should impose a heavy fine, say at least 500+ depending on the road and the message should be displayed at the signal post. Traffic police should impose the fine at randomly to all the vehicles who disobey the law.
6. Please try to simplify the rules and make it straight forwards, no lots of IFs,BUTs or exceptions.
7. Say it loud: publish the laws in media and sell the traffic rule books in nominal price.
8. Increase the fines min to 500 rupees and say it loudly in media, so that people will aware of the fines.
9. Make the fine collection online or over the counter. Incentives will be provided to the traffic police based on the she/he collected revenue.(this I will elaborate in my ext posts).
10. Heavy fine, I mean at least 1000 rupees plus for who goes in the reverse road.

Look at the other countries how much they fine if you disobey the traffic rules.

It's not the disobeying the rules it's creating threats to others.
Guys, what's your thought on this.
 
#107 ·
BEST route rejig on anvil to boost revenue
Organisation Plans To Introduce More Buses In Areas With Higher Passenger Density, Divert Loss-Making Services
Somit Sen | TNN

The BEST plans to restructure its bus routes across the city, introducing more new routes in areas where passenger density is high and discontinuing some of the loss-making routes.
Speaking to TOI, Om Prakash Gupta, who recently took over as BEST general manager, said, “I have asked the planning department to conduct a detailed study on all the 350 routes across Mumbai. We will look into various factors such as revenue generation, passenger needs, conflicts with other bus routes and need to introduce new buses in areas where there is a greater demand for BEST services.”
For example, at least six routes—which include those connecting north and south of Mumbai and the Eastern suburbs to the Western suburbs (where railways have no role to play), are profit-making. BEST plans to introduce more buses on these routes to ease passenger rush during morning/evening peak hours. The highest revenue generating route in recent months is 507 Ltd, which operates from Santa cruz station in the western suburbs to Nerul in Navi Mumbai. The longest route in Mumbai is the one from Hiranandani complex in Thane to Backbay depot. In fact, all buses plying from Thane to south Mumbai are huge revenue earners for the transport body as there are dedicated passengers who travel daily to office in these airconditioned buses.
A senior BEST official from the planning department said there were buses which ran parallel to each other on several routes and some of them could be diverted or discontinued. “We are preparing a list of such routes and this will be announced shortly,’’ he said.
The organisation plans to withdraw some routes which fetch not more than Rs 20,000 to 25,000 per month.
“We receive feedback from passengers and depending on the need, will introduce new bus routes in upcoming residential colonies,’’ Gupta said.
The BEST also runs feeder routes, which connects densely populated residential areas to the nearest railway station. More buses are likely to be introduced at stations in both eastern and western suburbs. “The BEST will ensure that a bus is always waiting for a passenger rather than having it the other way round,’’ a senior official said.
The BEST is also keen on operating new routes which run parallel to the Metro and Monorail routes. At present, it runs a trunk route—which runs north-south parallel to the Central/Western/Harbour lines.
Gupta will prepare the final route chart after seeking suggestions from divisional officers and commuters and appraising financial viability at the depot level.
The last re-structuring of routes was done in 2007, when some of the bigger routes, such as the one from Borivli to Colaba, were fragmented into two to three smaller routes.
PUSH TO PROFITS Longest BEST route Shortest route
Route No 813 (AC) | From Hiranandani Route No 631 | From Kurla complex in Thane to Backbay depot (West) station to Mathurani (circuitous route of 49.3 km) Estate (1.3 km)
Highest revenue generating route:
Route No 507 Ltd | From Santacruz station to Nerul (Rs 51 lakh per month)
Lowest revenue generating route:
Route No 216 | From Prabodhankar Thakre Udyan in Sewree to Swami Narayan Mandir in Dadar (not more than Rs 10,000 per month)
Route connecting the maximum hospitals/medical centres :
Route No 166 | From Tardeo to Antop Hill (covers Mahatma Gandhi hospital, LT hospital, CGS dispensary among other medical centres)
Route connecting a network of large number of schools and colleges:
Route No 9 | From Dr SP Mukherji Chowk to Antop Hill .
To introduce any new BEST route, the transport body has to check the following
It should be not be a private road and has to be maintained by the civic corporation The road has to be “bus worthy” and wide enough to allow passage of two vehicles at a time There should be no overhead obstructions in the form of cables/tree branches
There should be an adequate number of streetlights on the road Manoeuvering of the bus should be comfortable and there should be no blind corners
There should be a good turning circle at the terminating point for reversing the buses

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=TOIM/2010/06/07&PageLabel=4&EntityId=Ar00400&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T
 
#108 ·
MMRDA approves Kapurbavdi skywalk

The state owned Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has approved the construction of a skywalk over the Kapurbavdi junction if the claims of Rajan Vichare, the MLA from the Thane constituency are taken for real. The MLA has maintained that the proposal is now lying with the state government for consideration and start of work.

The Shiv Sena MLA claimed in a recent press release that he had been following up on the proposed skywalk project ever since he got the representation of the city in the state legislative assembly. It was due to his efforts and follow ups that the MMRDA decided to take up the proposal in principal.

source n full article

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...s-Kapurbavdi-skywalk-/articleshow/5900069.cms
 
#109 ·
Coming, Internet services on Mumbai's buses

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/06/02/stories/2010060251240700.htm

WI-FI RIDE.

Equifone Solutions is considering offering Internet access to commuters on the buses.

Rahul Wadke

Mumbai, June 1

If you're a new age Mumbaikar who has abandoned the crowded suburban train for the air-conditioned bus service offered by the BEST Undertaking, there is some good news.

Soon you will be able to access the Internet, download music, maps and so on for free while commuting to your destination.

WI-FI NETWORK

Equifone Solutions, the company that has rights to put up TV screens in buses and offer interactive content, is considering offering Internet access to commuters on the buses, with the help of a wi-fi network (a technology that helps connect computers to the Internet, wireless).

Equifone already offers Bluetooth services on buses and has a pilot project running on 150 BEST buses fitted with Bluetooth hubs that can deliver content such as songs, mobile phone applications and a variety of other information to Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones.

Mr Anil Peswani, Director of Equifone, told Business Line, “Currently, we are using GPRS for connecting the buses with servers for internal data usage. However, the speed is very low. Once the 3G and WiMax technologies rollout then it would be possible for us to offer the services to customers. We have rights for offering wi-fi among other connectivity services for 10 years in the buses,” he said.

Mr Peswani said that currently the commuters use data cards that cost a lot of money to connect to the Internet but Equifone services would be offered free of cost, “But before offering the services, we would be addressing the various security issues associated with wi-fi”.

Commenting on the emerging technologies, Mr Sandeep Pimple, Chief Executive Office of Upass, a company that offers mobile phone business solutions, said that passengers while travelling in the buses especially for long distances do not have much to do. Therefore, such technologies that offer entertainment and information will brighten up their journey, he said.

Mr Pimple said that both technologies are bound to pick up in the Indian environment because of their advantages in terms of mobility, ease of use and low operating cost. Though currently metro-centric, these technologies are emerging as effective medium of content deliveries, he said.

...
 
#115 ·
i was talking abt making the ac buses wi-fi enabled.They had decided this last yr they havent implemented it yet.Only abt 10% of the normal and ac buses have lcds and have cctv cameras which are going to be replaced by better ones.I guess best buses are only city transport buses which have cameras in them or do all the new city buses under jnnurm need to have one?
 
#123 ·
Im noticing alot of new rollsigns on BEST buses. Alot more electronic signs and several new routes, including Bus No. 31 which uses BWSL.

In addition they have expanded the Kinglong network and put sleek looking advertising on them to cover the ugly purple coloring. I must say its working pretty well.
 
#127 ·
It is a great relief today as the rickshaws are off the roads. I hardly waited a minute at the east-west signal in Andheri against atleast 3 minutes normally.

Though rickshaws are necessary, people are increasingly dependent on it due to lack of effective public transportation and parking space.
 
#128 ·
It is a great relief today as the rickshaws are off the roads. I hardly waited a minute at the east-west signal in Andheri against atleast 3 minutes normally.

Though rickshaws are necessary, people are increasingly dependent on it due to lack of effective public transportation and parking space.
"lack" wont be good word to use against mumbai public transport....as BEST/Locals has extensive coverage.. its just that they are crowded and slow due to traffic :)
 
#129 ·
No doubt Mumbai (Calcutta comes pretty close) has the best public transportation infrastructure and culture in India. But definitely, it is not sufficent. Share of public transportation is getting reduced every day.

Instead of targeting the people travelling in cars first, they can target the people travelling in autos/ taxis, since most of these people already use public transportation for part of their commute. If frequent mini buses from stations to nearby places are available, autos can be avioded. I heard Hiranandani, Powai hardly has bus services from any of the nearest stations forcing people to take autos.

And I havent seen a single mini bus in Bandra-Andheri (where it is necessary). Surprisingly, I saw few buses in SoBo, where the traffic is relatively better and disciplined.
 
#130 ·
Hiranandani have BEST bus service inside township, even i saw my self...but not much as other area's... main reason , I would say over 95% people living in Hiranandani powai have own car,, its one of costliest township in mumbai very posh.... but if you want to go Hiranandani powai,,, u have lots of buses from andheri and kanjur marg.....including AC buses,, I used kinglong myself, and carpool for more than 2 years travelling between thane to andheri thr powai... now road must be wide and concreted(it was part of JVLR).
 
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