Two-coach Metro most viable for Tricity: RITES
According to RITES, the two-coach Metro system is the most viable option for the Chandigarh Tricity area as it has a higher passenger carrying capacity
After a thorough qualitative and quantitative screening, the Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) has come to the conclusion that the two-coach Metro Rail system is the most viable option for the Chandigarh Tricity area.
Metro Rail is a grade separated system with exclusive right of way characterised by short distances of stations spaced at about 1 km and having high acceleration and deceleration with maximum speed of 80-120 kmph. It has a higher passenger carrying capacity and thus is better than Metrolite, a light rail urban transit system being planned for cities with lower ridership projection.
The RITES had also looked at other available alternatives, namely the normal bus system, bus rapid transit (BRT), Metro Neo and Metrolite but ruled out these options due to their inability to meet future passenger demand and significant greenhouse gas emissions.
During preliminary screening, the Metrolite and two-coach Metro had emerged as prospective options.
However, the Metrolite option was eventually eliminated as it was found that it won’t be able to cater to the tricity’s peak hour peak direction passenger trips (the period with the highest ridership during the entire transit service day) and will get saturated around the year 2054-2055.
The Metrolite has a passenger capacity of 15,000 peak hour peak directional traffic while the Metro Rail has a higher passenger carrying capacity of 15,000 to 1 lakh.
Also, the Metro Rail systems will continue to cater to the peak hour passenger demand much beyond 2056, attributed to its higher carrying capacity, suggested the report.
Further, several two-coach metro systems are already operational in India and its technology as well as various components like track gauge, civil structures and rolling stock components are easily available and standardised within the country.
For Metrolite technology, the country has no previous experience and thus expertise will have to be developed afresh which may result in implementation delays and cost implications.
Thus, the RITES, in its draft alternatives analysis report (AAR), recommended the implementation of the two-coach Metro for the tricity.
The Metro project, with a total length of about 77 km in Phase-I, is proposed to be developed between 2027 and 2037. In Phase-II (beyond 2037), a network of about 77.5 km in length has been planned.