Yeida ropes in central govt agency for ₹300-cr pod taxi project

GREATER NOIDA: The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) said on Thursday that it has roped in the central government agency, Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation Limited (IPRCL), to work on a ₹300 crore pod taxi project that will connect the Film City with the airport

GREATER NOIDA: The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) said on Thursday that it has roped in the central government agency, Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation Limited (IPRCL), to work on a ₹300 crore pod taxi project that will connect the Film City with the airport.

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“We have given the work to the Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation on Thursday. It has started working on this ambitious project that will play a crucial role in boosting the connectivity between the Film City and the airport. It will be a world-class and iconic project in this region,” said Arun Vir Singh, chief executive officer (CEO), YEIDA.

The YEIDA will finalise the date following the completion of the project in a month, when the detailed project report (DPR) of the project will be submitted. The DPR will give exact details related to alignment, funding pattern and the completion of the work, Singh added.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has already given a green signal to the project and has directed the YEIDA to work on projects to enhance the connectivity between the airport and other important destinations across the Delhi-NCR.

The distance from the proposed Film City project in Noida sector 21, along the 165 km Yamuna Expressway, to the Noida International Airport in Jewar is 6.5 km. The work on the ₹25,000 crore airport project is likely to be completed by 2023-24, as the concessionaire of the project — YIAPL, which is a 100% subsidiary of Zurich Airport International and has been incorporated to develop the Noida airport in Jewar, will start working at the site by mid-2021, said the officials. The airport will begin operating with two runways, and the airport will have five runways at its full capacity.

“Our aim is to complete the pod taxi project before 2023, when the airport will start its operations. The DPR will be completed within a month. Once the DPR is submitted, work for the next stage will start,” said Singh.

The YEIDA has also planned to connect Greater Noida with the airport, through a pod taxi route. “First, we will build a pod taxi from the airport to the Film City, and then we will start working on a 30 km pod taxi project to connect Greater Noida’s Pari Chowk with the airport. The UP government has asked us to build a pod taxi from the airport to Greater Noida as it will be a part of the multi-model connectivity project that aims to connect the airport with over one mode of commuting,” Singh added.

According to YEIDA, the pod taxi project will cost around ₹40 crore per km. “For a 6.5 km pod taxi project, we need around ₹300 crore as per the initial estimates,” said Singh.