Konkan Rly to invite global bid for Sky Bus

The Konkan Railway has decided to invite global Expression Of Interest for Sky Bus metro system, six years after a fatal mishap during a trial run derailed the project.

The Konkan Railway has decided to invite global Expression Of Interest (EOI) for Sky Bus metro system, six years after a fatal mishap during a trial run derailed the project.

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"We have decided to take the Sky Bus technology ahead for its commercial utilisation, and for that, we are inviting the global expression of interest shortly," a senior Konkan Railway official said.

Necessary ground work for inviting the global bid is being completed and it will be issued soon, the official said. Sky Bus is elevated suspended coach rail transportation system.

In September 2004, one person was killed and three others were injured when the Konkan Railway Corporation Sky Bus Metro coaches hit the piers of the track during a trial run at the Margao Railway Station in Goa.

"The flaw that reportedly caused the accident has been rectified, and we have implemented certain other safety measures to make it a fool proof system," said the official.

Since then, the Konkan Railway has successfully tested the modified system which is also eco-friendly.

There are many cities which are keen to adopt the Sky Bus metro system as a mode of urban transportation, he said.

Sky Bus comprises suspended light weight coaches that run well above the regular road traffic at a frequency of one minute and can travel up to 100 km per hour. It can be built over the central road dividers.

About the project cost, the official said, "It cost about Rs 100 crores per km for the Sky Bus metro system."