Noida Metro to replicate Kochi Metro’s financial model

Noida Metro will replicate financial model of Kochi Metro and adopt operational management strategies from the Chennai Metro

The Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) has said that it has decided to replicate the financial model of Kochi Metro. It will also adopt operational management strategies from the Chennai Metro.

Metro station being constructed at sector 148, Noida on the 30-kilometre Noida-Greater Noida line, is expected to be operational by March 2017. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

A four-member NMRC team will go to Kochi and Chennai for a study tour to learn their methods and implement them on the under-construction 30-km Noida-Greater Noida Metro project, which is expected to be opened to public in March 2017.

“The team will study how Kochi Metro managed funds to build the project. We have learnt that Kochi Metro is self reliant and manages its financial requirements smoothly. We want the Noida Metro to become financially self-dependent too,” said Saumya Srivastava, deputy chief executive officer (DCEO) of the Noida authority.

“We want to learn from Kochi how we can raise funds and what their revenue generation model is. To sustain any project, we need to make profit. Therefore, we will have to work on those lines,” he added.

At present, the Noida authority is funding the Noida-Greater Noida project, which has a budget of Rs 5,400 crore. The Union urban development ministry has also assured financial help.

The NMRC decided to send a team of officials to Kochi after its Metro director (systems) Praveen Goyal sent an invite in response to NMRC’s letter inquiring about their financial model.

The Kochi Metro rail project started on June 7, 2013, with a deadline of June 2016, said NMRC officials.

“Chennai Metro rail, which started operations on June 29, 2015, has 42 stations on a 45-km route. They are using advanced technology that enables just one person to manage operations for a whole metro station. We want to replicate the same technology so that we can cut costs without compromising on passenger service,” said Srivastava.